Possession of a Heart
by Christine Hart
Summary: After Nemesis basically...I needed something after that saddening movie...
1. Chapter 1

**_No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!!! But how I love it so..._**

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The light from the explosion blinded him, and the force of the wake threw him towards the wall, but he did not even have time to hit it. Fire engulfed the ship around him and the vessel, with a great crash, collapsed into nothingness. Pain was something he could not feel, yet the regret and finality of his decision followed him. He did not know where he was going…he flew towards a familiar ship before him, filled with horrified friends. Each one's grief merged with his own regret. 

He soared, leaving everything he had once known behind him. Even the regret and grief he had felt a moment ago vanished with each second he flew into a place he had never been before. It was soft, bathed in a glowing light. There were others there, many he had never seen before. With each passing moment he felt he was getting closer to something…something cherished. He traveled faster through the music and the warmth of comfort that seemed to make up this strange and wonderful place.

Then he saw her. Her golden hair flowed to her ankles, reflecting the light and his growing joy as he drew closer. Her smile and arms welcomed him, and he embraced her happily. Tears of his joy streamed down his cheeks, and the sweet music grew louder and carried them into the sky, which seemed to never end. They stared into each others eyes, and drew closer together until their lips touched.

For once, this man did not regret his own death. For he was finally with the one he loved. And he would not be torn from her again. Not for eternity.

* * *

"And so today, we not only mourn the loss of a superb officer, but also a dear and much loved friend. Today, we remember his optimism in everything that he did, and the kindness he showed to each and every one of us. Lt. Commander Data may have been considered just a piece of complex machinery to those who did not know him, but to _us_…the crew members of the _U.S.S. Enterprise,_ he was family. And in his never-ending quest to become more like us, he helped show us what it means to be human. To show kindness and equality to everyone, to be all that we can be in everything that we do, and to love one another unconditionally." Captain Jean-Luc Picard stopped for a moment, allowing himself a moment for he himself to think about the words he had just uttered, and did all that he could to control his voice for the end of his speech. He nodded and went on. "Let us always remember Lt. Commander Data, to whom we owe our lives, and our unconditional love as the human beings he always strived to become more like." There was a complete hush as Picard stepped down from the podium, then thunderous applause. But he knew it was not for him or his speech, which had taken him so many weeks to complete; it was in remembrance of the spirit of their friend. As the applause faded out, he took his seat beside Will Riker Troi and his crying wife, Deanna Troi. Dr. Beverly Crusher sat next to Jean-Luc, also not bothering to hide the tears that had begun to fill her eyes, but she wiped them away before they slid down her cheeks. Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge sat stalk still further down the row, his jaw clenched, his head against his chest. Lt. Commander Worf kept his eyes staring straight ahead, his hands folded tightly in 

Many more short speeches were given, the traditional farewell from Starfleet, and then the reception. The next hour was torture for each and every one of the Lt. Commander's closest friends, who could do nothing but remember each joyful memory that only brought more tears. All decided to excuse themselves early.

The next day, everyone went about their duties on the _Enterprise_ as though nothing had happened. Data's place at the console was taken, though to Picard it always seemed to be empty no matter who was sitting there.

Geordi went back to his work in Engineering, forcing himself to ignore his best friend's absence. He had never been so lonely in his life, though surrounded by friends all over the ship. Data's useful advice and expertise was never there, nor was his usual naïve charm that had lightened up Geordi's day so many times.

Will Riker Troi and Deanna Troi packed their things from their quarters in preparation for the next morning's transfer to the _U.S.S. Titan. _Together they walked about the ship one last time, bidding farewells to old friends and colleagues. As they were making their way out of Engineering near the end of the day, Deanna told her husband to go without her back to their quarters. She watched Geordi leave in a hurry, and she followed him.

"Geordi," she called. He stopped, waited for her to come to walk beside him, then continued. He did not even say hello. "Geordi," she said quietly. "Do you-"

"No, Counselor, I _do not_ want to talk about it," he said resolutely.

Deanna looked surprised. "I was just going to ask if you knew of any good drinks in Ten Forward," she said. "I had hoped we might have one together before I left tomorrow."

Geordi chuckled sarcastically. "And tell me, Counselor, how many of your _other_ friends did you ask that question?"

"One or two," Deanna replied smoothly. "But unfortunately all of them declined."

"I'm sure they did." He walked faster towards his quarters, obviously not wanting to talk any further. "Thanks anyway, Counselor, but I have plans tonight."

"What sort of plans?"

"Plans that don't involve going to Ten Forward and talking all my troubles away," he called over his shoulder.

Deanna quickened her pace and soon caught up with him again. "Geordi _please_," she tried to reason with him.

Geordi stopped abruptly and turned around. "You know what, Counselor? I don't need your expertise right now. All I want is to be _left alone. _And I don't appreciate you singling me out and trying to use your magical counseling abilities on me!"

Deanna looked stung. "I only want to help. I don't want you to lose yourself in this."

"Oh. I see. You want to bring me back from the depths of despair. Is that it?! Well I got news for you, _Counselor Troi._ You'll never be able to bring me back. No one will. And you know why? Because you can't bring _him_ back. _So stop trying!_"

Deanna didn't bother to follow him as he sped away from her down the corridor. But for once in her life, she realized that one of the many people she tried to help could not be helped. At least, not by her.


	2. Chapter 2

_**No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!!! But how I love it so...**_

* * *

Geordi left Deanna behind in the hallway. He hated to see the look on her face that he had hurt her in some way, but he couldn't help it. He couldn't go back and talk about his friend's death. He just couldn't. 

He walked into his quarters and came to stop at the window. He gazed upon infinite space. Somewhere out there were the remains of Lt. Commander Data. Somewhere, floating in the ruins of that day, was a scrap of metal that had once made up a hand that had reassuringly rested on his shoulder. Or perhaps a burned piece of a memory chip that had stored recollections of days in Engineering trying to figure out a mysterious problem with the warp core.

Geordi felt tears welling up in his eyes as he remembered Data's first real laugh on the Bridge. He remembered the concern and regret on his face after Geordi had been kidnapped, when he had thought it had been his fault. He smiled to himself, remembering how Data would always go into his speeches when no one really wanted to hear them or what they were about.

Geordi blinked away his tears. He went to his bed and lay on it, staring at the ceiling, allowing the memories to fill his head. He did not get up when the bleeping at his door signaled someone wanted to come in, nor when Mr. and Mrs. Troi left the next morning for their new assignment on the _U.S.S. Titan._

* * *

_  
_With his hands he summoned every particle into the room. They mixed and swirled amongst each other as the man stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Not quite…hmm…" he murmured to himself. He arranged the particles in a different association, then held the form it had created in the air while with the other hand he called a simplistic bed into existence and lowered the figure upon it. 

The man seemed quite pleased with himself as he sat down in a chair and waited. And waited. And waited. After a few moments, he got fed up and stormed to the side of the bed, cursing. He grunted and complained to no one in particular as he went over what he had done in his head. But, finally getting fed up with not only the form but also himself for wasting time that could have been spent disrupting a family dinner on Riza, snapped his fingers and returned to the chair. He sat, brooding. He was content, though, when the figure's chest of which he had just transformed began to rise and fall in rhythm.

But inside the mind of the figure lying on the bed, things were far from peaceful. He had been torn away from his chosen place, torn from the soft colors and music, and torn from love. Memories raged. They twisted into forgotten nightmares and regrets but smoothed out after a moment, following a simple, happy tune.

"Blue skies smilin' at me…Nothin' but blue skies do I see…"

Data's eyes opened and he blinked. The light streamed into his eyes, causing him to squint. His eyes registered the ceiling above him as being foreign…someplace he had never been before. He looked to his left and his right. _Everything_ looked foreign. He could recognize a chair or a ceiling or a table, simple everyday things; but they somehow appeared…different. Unusual.

But he could still see. And he could see that the man sitting across the room could not decide whether he was disgusted or pleased. The man looked _familiar_ somehow… Data raised himself to a sitting position. Something clicked. Recognition.

"Q?" Data said in confusion. "What are you-"

"Data old friend!" Q greeted him. He elegantly thrust himself from his chair and walked casually to Data's side. Data watched him with curiosity. A visit from Q didn't _usually_ mean well…and the fact that Data could not remember where he was or what he had been doing made the circumstances a _lot_ more suspicious.

Q's usual sarcastic face displayed a grin. "How are you, Data?"

"I _believe_ I am functioning within normal parameters," Data said slowly.

Q chuckled to himself. "I'm sure."

Data studied Q. "Although my…brain seems to be experiencing some technical difficulties."

"And why do you say that?"

Data cocked his head. "My positronic brain seems to be functioning significantly slower than normal." He glanced at Q. "I request to be returned to the _Enterprise_ in order to run a self diagnostic."

"Is there anything I can give you before you go?" Q asked in his sweet, seductive voice. He extended his hands as if grasping imaginary jewels. "I could give you…riches, beyond imagination! Perhaps a permanent home on a beautiful planet, or a wife of a beautiful woman."

Data stopped for a moment. He had been about to open his mouth, but reconsidered it. He thought, then stated, "You forget that I am an android, and have no desires for such things. Even my emotion chip could not simulate such human…" Data paused as he said the word…_human._ "…desires."

Q raised an eyebrow. He did not believe him in the slightest. "My my, my dear Data. I didn't know you had learned to lie. That is a very…_human_ sin to commit." Q strutted forward, a sinister expression overtaking his features.

Data felt a sensation over his skin. He had felt it before, though coldness had last given him the sensation of goose bumps. Now they simply appeared on their own. He felt…fear, yet anticipation and excitement.

"Q?" He raised his hand and put it before his face. His skin was no longer the unconvincing yellowish color it had been. It was the color of a true human's skin. He breathed out a shaky breath. This was _real._

"What can I say?" Q said, shrugging. "My grip on cybernetics is a bit…lacking," he said with a sly smile. His face turned disgusted again. "Being human is such a cursed way to live…perhaps I can take it back-"

"No!" Data said sharply. His gaze was intently focused on his hand, as the smile grew on his face. "I am human."

"_To thine own self be true."_ The haunting words echoed in his head. He had said them to Q once. But now it seemed that Q had ignored them. Yet Data could not bring himself to give it back. There was no mortal enemy involved, trying to tempt him with something that could harm others around him. Though he did question Q's reasons to himself, for now it wasn't hurting anyone. And it was making him more excited by the second.

"Yes, unfortunately you are." Q sighed. "You do realize that you are now flawed. Imperfect. Incomplete!"

Data finally tore his eyes away from his living flesh to meet Q's eyes. "On the contrary, Q, I have never felt more complete in my life. My life's _goal _has been _fulfilled!_"

"I wouldn't have, you know," Q said, pointing a finger at Data. "But it's just that I'm really not all that good with machines, if you know what I-"

"Q!" Q turned around to see another Q who was popping in from…literally nowhere.

"Q," Q greeted the other Q warmly. "How are you?" He dropped his pleasantries. "Seriously what do you want? Can't you see I'm busy here?!"

"Q, you need to come. The Council wants to have a little talk with you."

Q groaned. "I've had enough little talks to get all of Earth's teenagers through _adolescence!_" Q complained. "Can't I just do what I did last time-?"

Q gave Q a warning glance. "You can't be in two places at once, Q. The Council needs to see _all_ of you this time. You're in _big_ trouble this time…"

Q sighed and pouted. "_Fine_. Spoil all my fun."

"You are being stripped of your powers until we resolve this whole thing. Whether you get them back or not is yet to be answered…again." The other Q seemed to be fed up with Q, who stood gaping at his fellow Q.

Data looked from one Q to the other. "But, Q-"

Q snapped his fingers. It seemed clear that he had forgotten about Data. "Here," he muttered, throwing a ancient-looking comlink at Data. "See if you can contact someone."

"May I ask where we are?" Data asked. He had noticed that there were no windows or doors.

Q smiled a small smile for a moment. "One of my favorite vacation worlds." The other Q rolled his eyes.

"We'll be needing to talk about _that too!_" And with that, the Q pulled Q through the wall.

Data was left standing in the middle of the room. He walked around the room with the ancient comlink in his hand, more interested in the smoothness and coolness of the object than with his current predicament of being stuck in the big, white, boring room with no doors or windows.

He tried hitting the wall and discovered that his android strength was gone. He also discovered about half a second later what a bruise was, as the hand he had attempted to damage the wall with began pulsing a steady, dull pain. He knew that both were expected. Data knew that humans did not possess the abilities that he had had as an android. And though he had experienced much greater pain with his experience with the Borg Queen, he still cradled his hand as he walked around the room. Finally, he sat down in the middle of the room and stared at the wall.

The floor suddenly began to melt under him. Or, at least it seemed to. Looking down, Data discovered that it was…disappearing. He stood up and quickly and awkwardly stumbled away from the hole that was forming in the floor. He looked through it and saw the ground. Thirty feet below him.

Data glared at the wall, which was also shifting and vanishing. Q and the things he had to do to amuse himself. Even without his powers, he was probably laughing at the thought of Data realizing the room in the sky was disappearing with him in it.

Data prepared himself for the fall, and when the floor finally disappeared completely, he sailed through the air feet first. The ground sped towards him, and he met it rather gracefully. He smiled to himself. At least he could still land on his feet.

He looked around him. The planet he was on hardly looked like a vacation planet for Q; it looked like a high desert with rather unusual looking bushes. They were blue, and the sky was green. The dust beneath his feet and all over his face was an orange color, while the clouds, or what _looked_ like clouds overhead, where smeared about the green sky in a vast display of pink and purple. It looked like a two-year-old's drawing.

Data spun around as he heard something behind him. From behind the blue speckled bushes, beings appeared. They were orange, like the color of the dust. There were five of them, and none of them looked like they wanted to be sociable. One reached for his bow with his three-fingered hand and aimed at Data. The others mimicked him.

Data didn't know what to do, and he didn't like the feeling. As an android, his robotic brain would calculate the odds, the problems, and all possible solutions and their chances of success in a matter of _milliseconds._ But as a human, panic was getting in the way of the calculations his human brain was attempting to make. It was then that instinct took over.

The hunted have two options when cornered: fight, or flight. And when fighting is impossible, there is really only one other choice.

Run. Run like the _wind._

And that is exactly what Data did. He glimpsed the rocky, orange dusted hills ahead of him and ran like mad towards them. The first rock he reached he slid and skidded behind it and peaked out at the hostile people. But as Data studied them from behind his rock, he noticed something. Some were leaving. With dread, he realized that if they had a settlement somewhere, these primitive people would go back and get more people to find and catch this "alien" they had encountered.

Data sat back against his rock, finally catching his breath. He certainly couldn't run like the wind anymore; more like a slow breeze. Another part of being human, but he welcomed it.

He looked at the ancient comlink that he gripped in his hand. He tried to activate it, then said, "Data to anyone." He waited. "Data to anyone." Again, nothing. "Anyone?" No response. "Wonderful," Data breathed as he pried open the back panel of the device and began his work.


	3. Chapter 3

_**No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!!! But how I love it so...**_

* * *

CAPTAIN'S LOG STARDATE 56847.9:

WE ARE RETURNING TO STARBASE 127 WHERE THE _ENTERPRISE_ WILL BE RECEIVING REPAIRS FROM OUR MOST RECENT RUNIN WITH THE ROMULANS. THE STARSHIP THE _TITAN_, CARRYING MY FORMER FIRST OFFICER AND SHIP'S COUCILOR, WILL BE MEETING US AT THIS STARBASE.

THIS MEETING GIVES ME MORE REASON TO BELIEVE THAT STARBASE 127 WILL BE THE LOCATION OF A SURPRISE BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION IN MY HONOR, WHICH I HAVE BEEN SUSPECTING FOR SOME TIME. MY FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES ATTEMPTS TO PERSUADE ME TO HAVE FUN OF ANY KIND WILL BE TO NO AVAIL, HOWEVER, AS I PLAN TO HAVE SUFFICIENT FUN OF MY OWN FINISHING MY BOOK IN THE PEACE AND QUIET OF MY QUARTERS.

Captain Picard sat in his captain's chair, staring aimlessly at the wall. Though there was no reason to go into his Ready Room, he desperately wanted to. There was nothing to do on the Bridge except wait, and he could do that perfectly well alone with his book.

Jean-Luc couldn't stand being bored. All boredom ever brought was thoughts and memories, and not very pleasant ones at that. Besides, his new first officer was always inwardly pleased when she got to hold the reigns of the ship, even if it was for only a short while.

"You have the Bridge Commander Shelby," Picard said in his usual business-like way. He stood from his chair and walked hastily to his Ready Room.

"Is something wrong, Captain?" Worf asked politely.

"Not at all, Mr. Worf. I just want to read, that's all." And with that, he spun on his heel and the door hissed closed behind him.

All was silent for a moment. The Bridge crew looked toward the Captain's door, then solemnly went back to their work.

"Maybe you should go talk to him," Counselor Kayson told Beverly Crusher, who had decided to join life on the Bridge only a few minutes ago. Counselor Tanya Kayson had taken over as ship's counselor after Deanna Troi had left with her husband, Will Riker, who was the new captain of the _U.S.S Titan_. Deanna had told Tanya many, many times that Captain Picard would not come to see her at any point with emotionally stressing issues; she had always had to go to him when she sensed something wrong. Though somehow, Tanya didn't quite feel comfortable talking to the Captain about his problems. Mainly because she had tried once or twice, and he had asked her to kindly leave.

But he needed to talk to _someone_ about whatever was going on, and she knew that Beverly and Picard were quite close. Beverly sighed and looked towards the door. "I don't even know if he'll talk to _me_ about it." She pursed her lips together. "But I suppose I'll have to try."

Picard heard a series of mechanical bleeps and automatically responded, "Come." The instant after he regretted it. Hadn't he come to his Ready Room to be alone?

He looked up from his book to discover Beverly standing there. "What is it Beverly?"

"I could ask you the same question, Jean-Luc."

Picard set his book down on his desk. "Beverly," he began. Beverly came and put her hands on his desk, and leaned forward, looking him in the face.

"Jean-Luc, we all miss him. But you can't keep _isolating_ yourself. You can't keep running from reality. You have a ship that needs you to be their captain, not a book worm."

"I am most certainly _not_ isolating myself! I was simply wanting to read a book. I do not like having nothing to do."

Beverly looked unconvinced. "You've been always 'wanting to read a book' for the last two _months_."

"I have not."

"Yes, you have."

Jean-Luc sighed, irritated. "Counselor Kayson told you to come in here, didn't she?"

Beverly smiled. "She did suggest it."

Picard looked towards the door as if he saw through it. Beverly waited. She knew he would open up, even if he didn't want to. In a way, she had _two_ occupations; the _U.S.S. Enterprise_'s chief medical officer, and the Captain's personal counselor. He would have nothing to do with the new, _certified_ ship's counselor.

"There had to have been another way," he told her. "There always is. There's _always_ a second option. But there was so little time…"

"You made the best decision you could," she reassured him. "And so did he."

"The 'best decision' cost me my second officer's life. Obviously it wasn't the 'best decision.' But what bothers me most is even as I think of it now, I can't find a better option."

"He died in the line of duty Jean-Luc. Too many officers do. Their lives are lost simply because not everyone in this galaxy is as moral as we'd like them to be. Unfortunately, that's just the way it is. It has always been that way, and it will always be that way. You have to just accept it and _move on_."

Picard nodded. Then he went back to his book. "Thank you Beverly," he said from behind the cover.

Beverly stood there for a moment. "We all miss him, Jean-Luc. But we miss you too." He was silent, and so she turned and left the room.

* * *

"Captain, we are picking up a weak distress signal from Trelon 4," an ensign told Captain William Riker Troi.

"Trelon 4…" the captain repeated. "That planet hasn't even had first contact yet."

"No Captain, it hasn't. But there is a distinct signal. Whoever it is coming from is clearly not native of the planet."

"And clearly not of the Federation," Will added. "Since they interfered with the development of the world. Ensign, set a course change for Trelon 4. We've got an out of line vacationer to catch."

A half hour later, Will contacted the chief transporter. "Troi to Benson." Because the Betazoid's culture required husbands to take the wife's last names, Will now referred to himself as "Captain Troi."

"Benson here," came the reply.

"Lock onto the coordinates of the distress signal and beam them up."

"No can do, Captain. The signal is too small to lock onto."

"The away team will have to take a shuttle," Will said. "Commander Toké, Lieutenant Ghad, Ensign Jiiser, go."

"And me," Deanna said, coming off the turbolift and onto the Bridge. "I'm coming too."

"Why, Deanna?"

"I can't explain it…but I need to go." There was a struggle on Will's face. "Will, I _know_ this person somehow. Please. I'll be all right."

He gave in. "Fine then. Go. All of you." Deanna smiled and followed the away team to the shuttle bay.

"The distress signal is coming from this direction," Ensign Jiiser said. She waited for the others to climb out of the shuttle.

"Life readings?" Commander Toké asked.

"One, straight ahead about five hundred feet."

The Commander nodded. "Lieutenant I want you to keep on the lookout for other life readings. We need to keep away from any natives of this planet."

"Aye, sir," Lieutenant Ghad said.

Deanna seemed to be searching for something in her head. "Is something the matter?" the Commander asked her.

"No…no nothing's wrong." The Commander nodded.

"Let's go then."

They had not gone farther than a few yards when Deanna began to speed up. She walked hastily ahead of them through the trees, and then began to run.

"Mrs. Troi what's wrong? Slow down!" Commander Toké called. He tried to keep up with her. "Mrs. Troi please-!"

"I know him!" Deanna tried to tell him as she ran. "I've never felt him before but somehow I know him! And he knows me!" She ran faster, and the Commander fell behind with the others.


	4. Chapter 4

_**No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!!! But how I love it so...**_

* * *

Deanna kept going. She half ran, half slid halfway down a hill and came to a large rock. And there, lying atop the boulder, was a friend, though he looked slightly different. Deanna climbed up on top of the perch next to Data, gently laying her hand on his arm. He jumped slightly, but when he saw who she was, he calmed down.

Data smiled, closing his eyes again. "Counselor…I am very happy to see you." Deanna's hands were shaking as she watched him sit up, her eyes glued to his. They had changed from the artificial yellow they had always been to a silvery blue color.

"Data…" she breathed. "You're…you're…"

"Yes. I know." Deanna stared at him in astonishment.

Deanna smiled and almost laughed, though tears began streaming down her cheeks. Data looked confused. "Counselor, why are you crying?" he asked softly.

"Data you're…you're here. You're _alive…_my friend is alive." She began to sob. "I'm just so glad you're alive." She took one of his hands and held it in her own shaking hands for a moment, reassuring herself it was real. Data attempted to comfort her by putting his arm around her.

"It is all right, Counselor. Of course I am alive. I do not know why I would not be." He smiled wearily at her. "I assure you that I am." Deanna said nothing, and simply put her head against his shoulder, crying tears of joy.

Commander Toké, Lieutenant Ghad and Ensign Jiiser rounded the corner. They all looked stunned that their captain's wife was sitting in the dirt crying in the arms of a stranger. A very tired looking stranger at that.

"Who are you?" Lieutenant Ghad asked.

"I am Data," Data replied.

All three officers looked flabbergasted. "Lieutenant Commander Data, cr-created by Doctor Soong?" Ensign Jiiser stuttered. "But I thought you were-"

"Missing," Deanna said quickly, wiping the tears from her eyes. She smiled at the three standing with their mouths on the ground. "Data was missing. But we found him, didn't we?"

"Y-yes, Mrs. Troi," Commander Toké said. "Yes we did. And now that we've found him I propose we should return to the ship." He turned with his two officers and led the way. "I'm sure that the captain will be very interested in what we've found."

* * *

Deanna followed behind Data into the shuttle. He sat heavily into a chair and rested his head against the back of it. Deanna sat beside him, studying his face. "Data, you look as if you have not eaten or slept in days."

"That is because I have not."

Deanna suddenly looked quite irritated with him. She wasn't about to let a close friend who had been miraculously and mysteriously resurrected from the dead ruin his new health the first chance he got.

"For how long?"

"I really do not know…I believe it was a while ago…two days I believe."

"You _believe?"_

"I really do not _know_ Counselor," Data said, his voice rising slightly. His lack of sleep was finally kicking in. "It _could_ have been longer or shorter a time…I do not know."

Deanna didn't need to hear any more. She practically yanked him up out of his chair and dragged him by his arm to the back of the shuttle as the rest of the away team lifted the shuttle off.

"Did you at _least _drink something?"

"_Yes_."

"Sit," she instructed him. "I don't know what you thought was more important than sleeping and eating, but I am instructing you to sleep on the way back."

"I am sorry Counselor…but the natives were very persistent in their efforts to annihilate me. I _could not_ sleep!" He stopped abruptly and put his face in his hands. "I am sorry Counselor but…I do not know what has come over-"

Deanna instantly felt sorry for him. "It's okay, Data. Lack of sleep does that to people. You're safe now." She stood there, looking at him for a moment sitting on the bed, looking exhausted. He stared aimlessly at the wall as if he could see through it, and he didn't even seem aware that he was doing it. "Let me get you something to eat. Then, I want you to sleep. That's an order."

* * *

Will walked hastily down the corridor towards shuttle bay two. He was quite eager to question this person that his away team had picked up on exactly why he had been on a primitive planet. Even enemies of the Federation would not interfere with developing worlds.

But his away team had mentioned that there was something he would probably want to see. Will now felt the thrill of the mystery that Captain Picard had always loved so much. It made him walk faster than he already was.

He entered the shuttle bay, and stood waiting with his hands behind his back as the shuttle pulled in. It powered down and the door opened. Deanna was the first to appear. She looked rather amused. He stepped forward and greeted her with a kiss.

"Oh Will…" she said happily. "We brought back a miracle."

"What is it, Deanna?" he asked her, curiously.

"Not 'what,' Will. Who." He looked very confused.

"You brought back someone other than the invader of the planet?" he asked.

"They are the same person." She took his hand and led him aboard the shuttle as the others made their way back to the Bridge. His wife led him past the cockpit into the back, where food was kept and two small beds were built in.

Deanna smiled softly as she and Will stood in the doorway, looking at Data. Well, Deanna looked at Data. Will stared at him. Data was sleeping soundly upon the bed, his back turned to them, and one of his hands under his head.

"He was hurt?" he asked quietly, noticing the sleeve of Data's Star Fleet uniform had been rolled up and replaced with a white bandage.

"A small wound, yes. I suspect it came from the natives that apparently ambushed him." Deanna smiled. "I've never seem someone devour food in a matter of seconds." Will glanced at her with a questioning look. "He hadn't eaten or slept for however long he was on the planet." She sighed regretfully, already preparing an apology in her mind for what she was about to do.

"I really don't want to wake him," she whispered. Nevertheless, Deanna walked toward Data as her husband stood, his eyes not moving from his friend's form. "But he can't stay on the shuttle forever."

Deanna laid her hand on Data's shoulder, glad that this time he didn't jump out of his skin at her touch. He instead sighed in his sleep. "Data," she whispered. When he did not respond, she shook him slightly. "Data."

He opened his eyes and turned his head to Deanna. "Come on," she said. "It's time to get up. We can find you somewhere else to sleep." Data nodded slowly and heaved himself up. Only then did he notice Will Riker Troi standing there.

"Commander Troi." Data smiled.

Riker smiled widely. "Data, it's _captain_ now, remember?"

Data gazed at him with a look that suggested he wasn't quite all there at the moment, then said, "Oh…yes. You are a captain now."

Will opened his mouth again, about to ask Data how it felt to be back among his friends…but he noticed his wife standing out of Data's line of vision, giving him a look so that he knew that he shouldn't go through with what he was thinking of saying. "It's uh…good to see you again."

"Likewise," Data said. "How…" He stopped mid sentence. He looked confused. "What was I saying?" Deanna put her hand on his shoulder.

"Time for bed, Data. I'm sure you two can talk later." Data nodded.

"Aye, Counselor." He smiled again at Will. "_Captain._" He let Deanna lead him by his shoulders out the shuttle door and down the corridor.

"Counselor-"

"Data, I think you need to get used to calling me Deanna. I believe that close friends can call each other by their first names."

"Deanna, then. But you are still a counselor?"

"Of course. Not of this ship, but I still have my degree and still get people from time to time to talk to me."

Data stopped. "Deanna, before we go to wherever you are taking me, I need to talk to you."

"It can wait. I want to take you to Sick Bay, and then it's to bed with you. We can talk later, when you are stronger."

"This cannot wait. I need to talk to you _right now_."

Deanna looked into his eyes. She could see that he was very determined to talk to her about whatever it was that was troubling him. But she could easily be just as stubborn.

"_No_ Data. After Sick Bay, you will go to your quarters and sleep. And you are going to sleep all day tomorrow as well, do you understand me?" she said, finally allowing herself to be firm with him. "And if you argue with me, I will be forced to take other means of-"

"Fine," Data said, annoyed. "You win."

Deanna smiled. "I usually do."

Deanna walked out of Sick Bay relieved and amused. Even though he was exhausted, Data had asked so many questions and talked so much about being human for the first time in his life that the doctor had told them she had another patient to see and assigned one of her medical assistants to finish Data's examination. Data had caught her in her act to get away from his jabbering and had followed her, obviously wanting to purposely punish her for leaving with more questions. The doctor had finally thrown her hands in the air and proclaimed, "He's out of his _mind!_" This had no effect on Data, who had come walking a little too happily back looking a little too proud of himself for bugging the poor doctor.

The assistant had then told Deanna that it had in fact been longer than two days that Data had been alone and without sleep on the planet.

She was still smiling as she walked with Data down the corridor towards the quarters he had been assigned for the next two days till they reached Star Base 127 to meet up with the _Enterprise_. It seemed that her friend could barely focus on putting one foot in front of the other as he plodded along side the counselor.

"So this is what 'tired' is," Data almost incoherently mumbled.

"I'm afraid so," she replied. "Don't worry. It isn't much farther." They rounded a corner and Deanna led the way into a dimly lit room. Data didn't bother to even look around. His mind was only on one thing.

"Bed," he said. He crawled up into it without another word, wrapped his arms around a pillow and closed his eyes.

Though Deanna had not had very much experience with being a mother, she felt like one now. "Data, your communicator?" she reminded him. "And your shoes?" He groaned as though he didn't care whether he slept with his shoes and communicator on or not, but handed her the electronic device and pulled off his shoes and carelessly dropped them on the floor. He then resumed his position and continued snuggling with his pillows and was fast asleep.

Deanna sighed. She had been about to tell him to take off his uniform so it didn't get wrinkled, but apparently she hadn't been quick enough. So she set his communicator on the table and threw a blanket over Data's back. "Good night, Data," she said softly, then quietly left the room.

Captain Troi smiled at his wife as she joined him on the Bridge of the _Titan._ "How is he?"

"Tired. And grumpy." Will smiled at the thought of Data being grumpy. He had never thought he would see the day when the forever optimist of the _U.S.S. Enterprise _turned sour.

"Well hopefully he'll have gotten enough sleep when we meet up with Captain Picard. I'm sure they'll be very happy to see each other."

"I know we should tell him about what happened. He has a right to know but…" Deanna gazed at her husband in silence. "I don't know what he'll do."

"I'm sure that whatever he does, Counselor Troi will know exactly how to help him through it," Will told her, smiling.

Deanna smiled back. "I'm sure she will."

* * *

_He left the Bridge, walking with his most trusted friend at his side towards the last decision he would ever make. His friend followed him to the edge, opening his mouth to say something, but he stopped him. _

_He gazed at him. Memories of fun times and laughter floated back to his mind, and in one look, thanked his friend for it. He then launched himself towards the ship, never hearing the pained goodbye that followed him. _

_He yanked off the metal plating protecting the vessel from the vacuum of space, and shoved himself through it. He grimly made his way towards his captain, the man who had always believed in him and helped him along his journey in life. And now it was his time to thank him._

_He pulled the lifeless body's weight from the man, who stood gazing at him with dazed eyes. He pressed the small transporter device against the man's chest, and watched sadly as the man disappeared before him. _

_"Goodbye, captain," he whispered. He turned his attention towards the green light flowing from the center of the room's floor, aimed his phaser at it…and fired._

_The light from the explosion blinded him, and the force of the wake threw him towards the wall, but he did not even have time to hit it. Fire engulfed the ship around him and the vessel, with a great crash, collapsed into nothingness. _

_He soared, leaving everything he had once known behind him. To her smile, to her golden hair, to her loving arms and warm lips. To her, only her… _

Data sat up in his bed. The room around him was dark, and everything was silent, except for his breathing and a strange pounding in his ears and head that deafened him. The dream slowly faded, every face and voice seemed to blur and become unfamiliar.

He felt cold, and he subconsciously wrapped his arms around himself. The explosion…the light and the love…what did it all mean? He knew it had something to do with him, but he could not make heads or tails of what exactly it was.

He shakily climbed out of his bed and walked barefoot to the nearby table and sat down. His skin felt so cold…so numb. He couldn't shake it off, and he shivered. He took his communicator off its cold surface and activated it.

"Data to Counselor Troi," came a shaky voice over Deanna's communicator.

"Counselor Troi here. What's wrong Data?"

"Deanna I need to talk to you…please." Deanna and Will looked at each other.

"All right Data. I'm on my way." Deanna got up and quickly walked into the turbolift. The whole way she wondered what could possibly be wrong.

She pressed a button on the door panel, and after hearing a faint "enter," came into the room. It was still dark, though she could make out Data's form sitting at the table. She sensed much emotional pain from him, and immediately sat down beside him, ordering the computer to turn on the lights.

Deanna didn't know how to describe the look on her friend's face. Frightened? Regretful? Sad? Maybe it was all of them. She certainly felt all of them coming from him. And she immediately found out why as he instantly started talking.

"I had a dream…a nightmare. It was of something I had already experienced. Deanna…" he said, finally turning to look at her. "I cannot ever seem to remember very much about how I came to be here… There is a gap in my memory. The dream I had…I believe it was of what happened, but the moment I woke, it faded."

Deanna took on her counselor's attitude. "Go on."

Data shook his head, trying to put together in words what he was feeling. "I remember your wedding to Captain Troi quite vividly…and that I sang…"

"Quite wonderfully I might add."

He gave her a small, half-hearted smile. "Thank you. But…what happened afterwards…I can only remember certain feelings of the situations from certain individuals around me. Danger, fear, distress…courage and loyalty…and…"

"Yes?"

"The very last thing I truly remember, everyone felt, and I felt it too. I do not really know how I knew _everyone_ was feeling it, but…I felt…alone. I was somehow…" He struggled for words, his face scrunching up in his effort to let his feelings out. "I was not like everyone else. I was…with everyone, somehow. I was everywhere, with everything and everyone. And everywhere and in everyone, there was sadness." He looked at her. "I am sorry that I cannot…explain it. But the feelings…they haunt me."

Deanna struggled to keep her voice steady. She couldn't tell him…not yet. "Do you remember anything of where you were, or who you were with? Not images or voices, but perhaps familiarity? Friends? Foes?"

"They were friends." He thought for a moment. You were there," he said immediately. "I know you were there. You…you were _very_ sad. I remember that."

_How can he know that others were feeling pain and sadness? How can he know that I was there, grieving? He was already gone… _

"Loyalty and sadness…a friend…a _close_ friend. Geordi! Geordi was the friend in my dream. I remember I gave him one look before I left the ship. It was as if we were saying goodbye." He looked confused, and looked at Deanna. He expected her to tell him. "Why…? Why would I be saying goodbye to Geordi?"

"Who else was there?" Deanna asked, completely and purposely avoiding the question.

"A superior and a friend…" Data continued. "The Captain. Captain Picard was the man in my dream. I rescued him and I…" His face blanked. "And I stayed."

Deanna finally letting the emotion slip into her voice, yet she still refused to let herself sob again as she explained what had happened. "A clone of Captain Picard lured us into a trap. His name was Shinzon, and he had a weapon that dissolved living matter into dust and ashes. The Captain beamed over to the ship to face his dying clone and shut down the weapon. You…you left the Bridge and went over to the ship…minutes later the Captain was back and the ship exploded in front of us."

"I dragged a body off of him…then he…he dematerialized in front of me and I said goodbye. I fired…" Data recalled in a hushed voice. He looked at Deanna. "Then…then I was…I was something else. I sensed all the sadness, I heard the crying, yet I could not answer." He looked surprised at himself. "I remember," he whispered. "It was _horrible_. I could not comfort any of you, tell you I was, in a sense, all right."

Both were silent for a moment. Deanna stared at him with her deep ebony eyes in understanding and awe. "You saw us…?"

Data nodded. "All of you. All my friends. I saw you. You were alone in your quarters, on your bed. You were hugging a pillow, staring at the wall, sobbing. The Captain stood at his window for hours in his Ready Room, his fists clenched at his sides…Commander Riker always seemed to be in Ten Forward, at the counter. And Geordi…he spent all his time alone in his quarters. He would go days without eating. All night he would stare at the ceiling. He never cried."

"We all missed you so much…you _sacrificed _yourself and left us without a goodbye!" Deanna cried. "It destroyed Geordi…it almost destroyed the Captain. And none of us could do anything about it."

Data stared at the wall. "Tasha…" he whispered to himself.

"What?" Deanna asked. "What, Data?"

"Tasha," he said louder. "I was with Tasha! She was there…I met her there in the sky. We were together." His eyes filled with tears, and they spilled over and down his cheeks. "I was torn away from her."


	5. Chapter 5

_**No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!!! But how I love it so...**_

* * *

Deanna stared at him. Years of counseling experience could not give her anything to say to him. But then of course, she had never counseled anyone who had been dead and reunited with their loved ones.

"Thank you," he said quietly. Embarrassed, he wiped the tears away. "You have been a great help to me." He still would not tear his eyes away from the wall. Deanna put a hand on his shoulder, making him turn to look at her, and as he did so she pulled him into a hug. It was the only thing she could say. He held her tightly for a moment, sobbing quietly. A few seconds later he pulled back.

"I'm sorry, Data," she told him. She got up from her chair. "If you need me again, I will be on the Bridge. All right?" She smiled, trying to lighten the moment. "And this time, Data, please take off your uniform so it doesn't wrinkle?" He nodded and smiled back.

"Thank you, Counselor."

"_Deanna,_" she corrected him.

"Thank you, _Deanna_."

* * *

She smiled again and left the room, and an obedient Data removed his uniform and climbed back into his bed.

Three days later, Captain Picard and his senior crew members waited patiently for Captain Troi and Counselor Troi's ship to come into view at the Star base 127. Finally, a small shape came into view, and it came with a message over the intercom.

"Hello to you all, Dr. Crusher, Captain Picard, _Lt. Commander_ Worf, Geordi, and Commander Shelby. Congratulations on your promotion to first officer, Commander," the voice said, obviously very happy. They all looked at each other. They all recognized the voice. And most of them weren't very happy about it.

"Captain Troi, what is the meaning of this?!" Captain Picard angrily said back to the incoming ship.

"The meaning of what?" the voice said, getting happier by the minute. "Captain, I have been looking forward to this for three days! Do not tell me you are _already_ angry with me."

"Captain Troi!" Captain Picard roared. "I demand that you turn off that blasted computer simulation this instant!"

The voice sighed. "All right. I will put Captain Troi through if you wish to speak to him."

"Captain Picard," Will's voice greeted warmly. Picard could mentally see the smile on his former first officer's face. "We will be docking in approximately three minutes. I will speak to you more then, though I don't think it'll be me you'll want to speak to," Will said, not even giving Picard the chance to speak before he ended the transmission.

Beverly looked at Picard. His face was pure irritation and anger at Will Riker Troi. "Well. When he docks, I will give him the shortest and most spirited lecture I have ever given in my life," Picard said angrily. Geordi's face said the exact same thing.

He turned and stiffly headed towards the docking bay, the rest of his senior officers behind him. They watched the _U.S.S. Titan_ pull in, watched the crew emerge for their short stay at Star base 127. Captain Picard could make out Will and Deanna heading up together from the hangar, and from behind them, another figure emerged. He weaved through the crowd of officers, standing on his tiptoes and scanned the hangar bay, looking for something.

His eyes found the Captain. "Captain! Geordi!" he cried, the echo bouncing off the walls. He began running towards them. His all-too familiar face came into focus the closer he got, and suddenly Picard's feet and chin were glued to the cold durasteel floor. He was smiling…something Picard had never seen him often do. He was laughing as he ran, and even did a little jump in the air.

Geordi was running forward, with his eyes wide and his mouth open in a loud cry of joy. They met in the middle with a huge bear hug and a lot of emotional greetings the Captain could not make out. Geordi clung to the man, almost as though he were refusing himself to let go. "Captain!" he heard Geordi cry. "Captain it's him! It's him!" The man broke away from Geordi's hug and the two walked swiftly back to the Captain.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard could not speak. He tried to several times, but nothing came out. He knew the rest of his senior officers around him were having the same problem.

The young man before him was different than he remembered him, yet exactly the same, even without his uniform. His eyes were the lightest blue he had ever seen in a long, long time. His hair was the color it had always been, a deep, dark brown. His mouth was open in a huge smile and he was practically laughing as he gazed at the Captain.

"Hello, Captain." He reached out his hand, and Picard slowly took it and shook it slowly before the young man pulled him into a hug. Over the man's shoulder he glimpsed Will and Deanna smiling at him.

"Well, Captain Picard? Still think it's all a computer simulation?" Will laughed. Picard pulled back and looked at his second officer's face, and finally began to smile, then laugh as he hugged him again. He felt as though a long lost son were finally at home, safe in his care once more. He could not even say his name.

"Captain," Data said. "I think this time it would be appropriate if I said 'hello.'"

Picard laughed, though he felt like crying. "And I do hope you never have to say goodbye ever again…Data." He sighed, grasping the young man's shoulders, taking a good long look at him. "Lt. Commander Data Soong."

"Ah yes," Data laughed. "A last name." Geordi laughed and put a friendly hand on his best friend's shoulder.

"Welcome to a human's world, Data."

By the end of their time spent in the hangar bay, Data had gotten hugs from everyone except for Lt. Commander Worf, who was content to shake his hand and smile a small smile, which for Worf was one of the greatest displays of joy a Klingon could show. Data definitely felt welcome, as welcome and loved as he had ever felt.

* * *

The birthday celebration went on as planned by Captain Picard's closest friends. Normally, Jean-Luc would have resisted furiously, but he was so blissfully happy about Data's return that he really didn't care whether the embarrassing event went on or not. And though people were supposed to be celebrating _his_ birthday, his guests simply greeted him, wished him a happy birthday, then began talking to him about Data, talking about Data amongst themselves, and talking to Data himself. Picard honestly didn't care. He would rather have the attention directed elsewhere, and it seemed that Data never got tired of greeting people and receiving numerous hugs from old friends and crew members.

Geordi had not moved from Data's side the entire time. Picard could only imagine how excited he was to see Data again. He smiled and raised his glass in a silent toast to two of his best officers.

"Enjoying your party?" Will asked, seating himself next to Picard and setting his drink down on the table.

Picard smirked. "I don't know if I would call it _my_ party, but I am enjoying it somewhat."

"Good." The two watched Data, who was laughing and talking with Geordi. Picard was sure they had much to catch up on.

"Will, where did you _find_ him?"

Will sighed. "Interesting story, actually. We were heading this way when we received a weak distress signal from Trelon 4. We had already passed the planet, but decided to go back. Trelon 4 in a primitive planet, without communications with the rest of the galaxy, so we were curious to see who it was. I ordered an away team down to the surface by shuttle, and Deanna insisted to accompany them. I think that she sensed him down there and somehow recognized him. The away team said that she started running off in the direction of the detected life form, yelling in hysterics that she knew him. And she was right. She said she found him asleep on the top of a large rock."

"What on earth was he doing up there?"

"Apparently the natives of the planet don't take well to strangers. They had been stalking him for several days, depriving him of sleep and injuring him, and he finally climbed on top of that rock in hopes that he could sleep." Will laughed softly to himself. "He was pretty delirious. Our chief medical officer asked to be temporarily relieved of duty by the time she was done with him."

After a few hours, the guests said their goodbyes and slowly began drifting away. Only Picard's senior officers remained. All were quietly talking amongst themselves.

Geordi chuckled. "I have never seen so many handshakes and hugs received in my _life,_" Geordi said.

"Neither have I," Data said happily. "But I rather enjoyed it."

Geordi chuckled again. "I bet you did." He sighed and simply gazed at his friend.

"You missed me," Data guessed with a smile. "It is not that hard to tell."

"You have no _idea _Data. I thought about you all the time!"

"Actually, I do know. Somehow I saw all of you after the incident. As Deanna put it, I was a…spirit, in a manner of speaking. I saw how miserable you were Geordi. I saw you in your quarters, how you did not sleep or eat because of my death."

Geordi looked positively dumbfounded. He stood speechless for a moment, then said, "So…you know what happened to you?"

Data nodded with a sigh. "I first encountered part of my memory of the experience in a nightmare. Counselor – _Deanna_ and I worked together to recover the rest of what happened. I had experienced nightmares in the past, through the program that Dr. Soong gave me, but I had never experienced a…_human_ nightmare. When I awoke, I was terrified, confused, and physically _cold_," Data said with uncertainty. "Is that always the case when humans experience nightmares?"

"Pretty much," Geordi replied. "Unfortunately."

Data looked a little bewildered by that information. Geordi quickly responded, "But don't worry about it. It doesn't happen that often. And even when it does, you start to realize after a while that it's a dream, even while you're sleeping. And then it doesn't have as much effect if you think it's real."

Data nodded in understanding. "Thank you Geordi." He smiled. "I missed you as well." He laughed a little. "But you have changed. You let your beard grow out again."

Geordi touched his chin with his fingers. "Yeah…I could never decide which I wanted. You've changed too though…I've never seen you out of uniform. And look at this!" he said, reaching up to ruffle Data's hair. "It doesn't stay in one place all the time anymore! Your skin is real, and your eyes are so…so…"

"So what?"

"I don't know. They're so _light _of a blue. But at least they're not so colorless anymore." He smiled. "Hey, stay here a minute. I'll be right back."

"May I ask where you are going, Geordi?"

"Just gonna go get something!" Geordi called. He ran out of the room. Data wondered where he was going, but he sat quietly in his seat and waited. About two minutes later, he heard footsteps and the door to the large room hissed open. And then, something inside him exploded, as it had once before.

"_Spot!_" Data cried excitedly. Everyone looked up and watched as Data swiped the cat from Geordi's arms and spun in a circle with the cat against his chest. "Oh Spot…" Everyone smiled as they watched the reuniting of man and cat.

Geordi laughed. "I thought you might be excited. And boy was it funny."

Data glared at Geordi with a smile, and laughed. "Yes…at least I have had experience with human emotions before, or I might have cried again. Oh…I love you Spot. Where was she? I did not know whether you or the Captain would rid yourselves of her or not."

"It's not like we hated her, Data. But yeah, the Captain took her in after you, uh…left."

Data turned to the Captain in confusion. "But it was my understanding that you do not like small animals, Captain. I thought you only cares for horses."

"Your understanding is correct," Picard told him.

After a moment, Data nodded. "I understand," he said. "Thank you, Captain."

"You're quite welcome Mr. Data. To tell the truth I became rather fond of her."

Data kissed the top of Spot's head affectionately. "I'm glad that you two got along. Spot usually isn't very fond of other people." The whole group stared at him. When he finally realized what he had just said, his eyes and his mouth widened. He began laughing breathlessly. "I used a _contraction!_ A common amalgamation of two words to form one comprehensible term! _Incredible!_"

Geordi looked at him and laughed. "Human and I still can't understand his vocabulary. Congrats, Data."

Out of the blue, Q appeared in the middle of the room with a snap. With him came party hats to everyone's heads. He blew on his kazoo and chanted, "Happy, _happy_ birthday to my favorite capitán!"

"Q," Picard practically growled. "I had a feeling you had something to do with this."

"Where's my 'hello'?" Q asked, pretending to be hurt by Picard's comment. "Or perhaps a gracious 'thank you'?" The captain said nothing, and so Q turned around to Data. "And how have you been, Data?"

"Well," Data replied shortly.

"Oh I do hope you didn't have much trouble getting off-planet," Q said to him pleasantly, "but I got in trouble with the High Council again." He sighed sarcastically, as usual believing that his ways were best for everyone in the universe because they benefited one thing; himself. "They told me I could not fiddle around with matters of life and death. But when I told then the plain, honest truth, they were forced to agree with me."

"And what truth might that be, Q?" Picard asked suspiciously. He had many doubts about what Q's "plain, honest truth" might be.

"I simply told them that Data never died, so _technically_, I wasn't fiddling with anything." He smiled shrewdly. "He was just…_disassembled._"

"Why, Q?" Picard asked. It wasn't that he didn't want Data back, but Picard knew that even if Q did only mean well, thing usually didn't end up well. And even if it _did_ end up well, things usually got worse first.

Q put his hands on his hips and glared at Picard. "Why is it that every time I try to do something nice for you, Jean-Luc, you question me?" he asked crossly.

"Because I know you too well," Picard said in a tone that clearly showed his dislike for the very fact he had just uttered. It seemed that Q was always taking advantage of him, pretending that Picard was his dear and close friend that would do anything that his little heart desired.

Q just sighed, disappointed. He walked over to Data and casually slung his arm across Data's shoulders. Data looked a little uncomfortable with his current position but stood still, petting Spot as she hissed at the stranger. Q ignored the cat.

"Data saved my life once. I had to repay that favor. I made him human only because when I tried to revive him as an android, he didn't work!" He snorted. "I must have tried his on and off switch a dozen times, _rewired_ him a dozen times…" Q waved it off. "So I just took the easy way out. I made him human." He studied the captain's face. "You still look skeptical, Jean-Luc. But besides his appearance, he's exactly the same! All the memories and all the knowledge he knew before are still there, and are as easily accessible now as they were then. So in other words, he's a _genius._"

Everyone in the room suddenly looked very, very fascinated with Data. He smiled shyly at all of them.

"Mentally, he can do all the things that you could do ten times faster. His mind is far more advanced."

"Did you make him that way on purpose?" Geordi asked, looking at his friend as if he were once again an expensive and incredibly complex piece of technology.

"Of course not! Much of his old self went into his human body, such as his features, personality, memories, and his mind." Q snapped his fingers. "It's that simple!"

Data stared at Q's fingers, wondering if anything had happened. "What did you do?" Data asked, a little nervous about what Q might decide to do next.

Q smiled. "When the time comes, you'll find out," he said smugly. He snapped again and vanished.

Data stood in the middle of the room. He did not say a word, and stared blankly out the window of the star base into the deep black emptiness, and thought. The rest of his friends continued to watch him, and Picard slowly stood and walked over to him. He laid a hand on his arm, and Data turned to look at him with expressionless eyes.

"Data," the captain said. "Are you all right?"

"Yes sir," he answered. "I just…I don't want any of you to think of me any differently."

"We won't," the captain reassured him. He smirked. "You have always been a genius, and I suppose you always will be. Q's right," he said with a laugh at the thought that he was agreeing with Q for once. "Your superb intelligence is part of what makes you Data."

Data returned his smile, but it slowly turned to a thoughtful frown. He walked to the window and stared out of it. His brow furrowed, and he took in a sharp breath.

"Data?"

Data slowly turned and handed Spot to the captain, then walked quickly out the door. "I must go," he called over his shoulder as he left.

They all stared after him for a moment. Geordi started to follow, but Deanna touched his arm. "Don't," she said. "He wants to be alone."


	6. Chapter 6

_**No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!!! But how I love it so... I also do not own any of the random songs that I stick in here. None of them. Uh uh. Nope.**_

* * *

Data's breath came quicker and quicker as he walked faster and faster. He didn't exactly know where he was going; it seemed a string was attached to his chest and was pulling him wherever he needed to go, and he mindlessly let it.

He finally arrived at his destination. The place was very light. There were lights everywhere. They seemed to make the entire place very…soft. Warm, and soft. Data sensed he had been here before. Perhaps it was a planet he had once visited, or an experience on the holo deck he remembered.

No. It had been someplace different…but he _had_ been in this place before, or somewhere like it. Then, something else. Music. Soft, slow music. But he realized he was not physically hearing it. It seemed that it was playing in his head…in his heart.

Ahead of him, something began to appear. It was beautiful…a bright, white light that nearly blinded him, yet he could not take his eyes away from it. It glittered as it floated, hanging suspended in the air. He walked closer as the light began taking shape. The top formed into a head, connected to the forming body by a slender neck. From it's sides came delicate hands and perfectly outlined fingers. From the bottom came graceful legs and feet.

From the head flowed long, golden hair. And though the wondrous light was fading, Data did not notice. He struggled with each step towards the woman clothed in white silk. It seemed that her body lowered from the air to meet his arms. He held her, sinking to his knees.

The light finally shrank away, revealing her face to him. Somehow he already knew, but the reality of her, her here, in his arms, sank deeper. He shook as her eyes fluttered open.

She could not speak, but their eyes met in understanding. They both knew. She reached up with her hand and wiped away tears he had not even known had spilled down his cheeks. His breath came in gasps at her touch, and he leaned down, kissing her gently. "Never again," he whispered. "Never again, Natasha."

* * *

The group of friends finally dispersed on Counselor Troi's advice. She told them she couldn't tell what was going on, but that it was important to Data that he be alone, and that he would want to be alone for some time. Beverly had left first, wishing everyone well. Then Worf, then Will, and the captain, until only Geordi and Deanna remained.

Geordi tapped his fingers against the table. He waited anxiously, watching the door the entire time. Deanna sat beside him. "Geordi," she said gently. "Maybe we should both just go back to our quarters. I'm sure that Data will contact us when he is ready."

"I'd just like to know what is so important," Geordi said. "He's been away for so long…" He sighed. "Counselor, about what I said to you the last time we talked…I'm…I'm very sorry. I didn't mean it. I was just lonely."

Deanna smiled sympathetically. "It's okay Geordi. We all reacted differently to his death. I thought I would be able to break you away from it but…I was wrong. I'm sorry too, for being so persistent when I shouldn't have been."

The two were silent. "Well," Geordi said. "I suppose I'll try listening to you this time." He got up out of his chair and began walking towards the door, Deanna right behind him.

"Goodbye Geordi, and don't worry," Deanna said with a smile as she walked away. Geordi stood for a moment, looking after her. Then he walked in silence back to his temporary quarters.

Data walked slowly through the hallways back to his room. He carried Tasha in his arms. She was curled up against his chest, the white silk dress she was wearing and her long golden hair spilling over his arms like a waterfall. It was late evening, so everyone was in their quarters and not wandering around the hallways. He was glad. He didn't feel like talking or explaining anything at the moment.

He walked into his dark room and set her gently on his bed, and then stood simply gazing at her for a moment in the dark. She was so beautiful…she was like a precious jewel that he could not stop marveling at.

Data had no wish at the moment but to simply keep her safe from everything. Still carefully watching her, lay down beside her, taking her small, warm hand in his and fell asleep with his love at his side.

"_Every night in my dreams  
I see you… I feel you…  
That is how I know you go on._

_Far across the distance,  
And spaces between us  
You have come to show you go on._

_Near, far, wherever you are  
I believe that the heart does go on…  
Once more you open the door,  
And you're here in my heart  
And my heart will go on and on_

_Love can touch us one time  
And last for a lifetime.  
And never go till we're one…_

_Love was when I loved you,  
One true time I hold to…  
In my life we'll always go on._

_Near, far, wherever you are  
I believe that the heart does go on…  
Once more you open the door,  
And you're here in my heart  
And my heart will go on and on_

_You're here, there's nothing I fear…  
And I know that my heart will go on.  
We'll stay forever this way,  
You are safe in my heart  
And my heart will go on and on…"_

* * *

Tasha woke. She had a vague recollection of all that had happened to her. She knew she had come back from death, and that she was with someone she loved. But she didn't know where she was or how she had gotten there. She was staring at a ceiling, and the room she was lying in was dark.

She felt something warm against her and turned her and turned her head to the left. Data was peacefully sleeping beside her, his two larger hands wrapped around one of hers. There was a smile still lingering on his face.

She took her other hand and touched his face gently. He smiled even more and sighed in his sleep. He was…different. But she knew already. And she didn't care.

Tasha moved closer to Data, putting her back against his chest. She heard him wake and turned to look at him. The little light there was coming from the stars outside shined in his eyes. "Tasha?" he said drowsily.

"Data," she whispered. She snuggled closer. He wrapped his arms around her and sighed.

"I love you, Tasha," he whispered.

"I know. I love you too." She stared into space. "Do you remember…?"

"Yes. We were together."

"And we are together now." Tasha turned to look at him again. "But why here?"

"I don't know. But it doesn't matter. I don't care where we are as long as we are together."

"Neither do I." Tasha took a deep breath and let it out. "It was heaven."

"It was only heaven because you were there," Data said with a smile. "I had been waiting for years to see you again."

"And now we are here, alive, with our whole lives ahead of us." Tasha let her eyes slide closed again. "To spend together. Together forever."

* * *

Geordi stood outside Data's door, debating with himself whether he should ring or not. It was ten o'clock in the morning and still Data had not come out of his room.

He finally decided not to. He would follow Deanna's advice. Data would come out when he was wanted to. But just as he was turning to leave, the door opened behind him.

Geordi turned. Data was standing there, looking extraordinarily happy. In fact, he was _glowing_. It was far from the upset look he had had on his face when he had left the night before.

"Good morning, Geordi," Data said with the perkiest voice Geordi had ever heard.

"Hello…" Geordi said almost cautiously. "Why are you so happy?"

"Because I need to go somewhere," Data said in a sing-song voice. He stepped out of his room and before Geordi had a chance to peek in, it shut.

"Where?"

"I want to go get some flowers. Do you know where I might find some?"

Geordi was desperately trying to understand why Data would be happy about getting flowers, but he answered his friend's question. "There's a garden on Deck 5… But why are you going to get flowers?"

"Because I feel like getting flowers," Data said. "I'm sure she would love them." He smiled at Geordi and walked swiftly down the hallway, humming.

Geordi stood there with his mouth open. _She? _Who was _she?_ Geordi ran down the hallway to Deanna's quarters and repeatedly pressed the little electronical door bell.

"Come in come in!" Deanna's voice said. Geordi burst through the door. "What is so important that you feel you need to break my door bell?" Deanna said with a joking smile. "Sit down!"

Geordi preferred to stand. "Data just came out of his room."

Deanna suddenly looked very interested. "And?"

"He was really happy…he said that he wanted to go get flowers for a 'she.'"

"A she?"

"A she."

Deanna looked puzzled. "What sort of 'she' might he be referring to?"

"I don't know. He looked so upset last night…and then he comes out this morning looking like he's just fallen in love? It doesn't make any sense Counselor!"

Deanna thought for a moment, the shook her head. "I don't know."

"I'm gonna go talk to him. He should be coming back pretty soon."

"I'll come with you," Deanna said, getting up. The two walked towards Data's quarters, and saw him coming back with a handful of flowers. He still was not wearing his uniform, and he had combed his hair back like he always had, though it wasn't as cooperative in staying slicked back as it had in the past.

"Geordi! Deanna! Hello!"

"Data," Deanna said with a grin. "How are you?"

Data sighed happily before he answered. "I'm in love," he said simply, blissfully staring into space. He didn't say another word but strode back into his quarters with a large smile, still humming.

Deanna and Geordi looked at each other. Neither of them had seen Data so happy. Deanna nodded, agreeing with Data's statement. "He's in love," Deanna said matter-of-factly. Geordi was left bewildered in the corridor.

* * *

Tasha met Data with a hug as soon as he walked in the door. He handed her the flowers, and she thanked him with a smile. "They're beautiful," she told him. "Data, I think we should let everyone know what's going on." He nodded.

"But first…are you hungry?" he asked her. "We can eat anything you want, anything."

She shook her head. "I'm not hungry."

He took her hand. "Then let's go. The _Enterprise_ is leaving tomorrow at noon, and I plan to go with it. I am still second officer, you know."

"Yes, I know." She smiled, reaching up to put her hand on his face, looking into his eyes. "Your eyes are beautiful, Data."

"I have been told that a lot lately."

"That's because they are." She smiled and squeezed his hand. "All right. Let's go." Together they walked out the door and into the hallway. Tasha had not bothered to do anything with her golden hair; she simply let it hang to her waist.

They stopped first at the captain's quarters. Tasha hung tightly to Data's hand as he pressed the electronical doorbell, and when it opened, Picard found his jaw glued to the floor for the second time in 24 hours.

"_Tasha?_" Picard exclaimed.

Tasha smiled. "Captain."

And such were the events of that morning. Just as it had been with Data the day before, Tasha received many, many hugs from practically everyone. And though there was no party, everyone still talked about it.

Data and Tasha walked hand in hand down the hallway. The pleasantries had been taken care of as far as they were concerned, and now the two were aimlessly wandering about the star base corridors.

"I think I want something sweet," Data mused out of the blue. "I've never truly tasted anything before."

Tasha smiled. "Let's go to Ten Forward. I've got the perfect thing for you to taste."

Data looked down at her as they walked. "I must admit Tasha, I'm not quite used to you being so…fun. And perky."

"And I'm not used to you being so emotional and being able to use contractions." They both laughed. "Maybe I'm just happy to be alive. To be able to breath air, and laugh and know it's real…to be with you and know that you are real and know we are both alive together." She hugged his arm. "Oh Data… I don't know why I never told you I loved you. I shut you out. I'm sorry."

"I had always loved you," Data said quietly, almost to himself. "Though I didn't realize it until I was given emotions." They arrived at Ten Forward and sat at a table. The room was completely empty except for the bartender and a few employees. "When you and I-"

"Let's not talk about that," Tasha interrupted him. "I still regret that I did it."

"But we cannot blame ourselves. Whatever irrational things we did were committed because of the influence of a virus." The waiter came and he abruptly stopped talking. "One…" He looked at Tasha. "What are we getting?"

"A milkshake."

"One chocolate milkshake, please."

"What about strawberry?"

Data stopped, thought, then said, "One chocolate and strawberry milkshake, please." Tasha laughed as the man hurried off the complete the odd order.

"_Both?"_ she said.

"Why not?" Data asked with a smile. "Deanna would suggest chocolate, but then you insisted upon strawberry. And since I have often heard that the two flavors compliment each other, why not put them together?"

"It's just…unusual."

"Unusual? Why?"

"I don't know…it just is. But I'm sure we'll like it."

The man came back and set the dessert in front of them. Data immediately stuck a straw into the middle of it and sucked hard on it before Tasha could tell him not to. His eyes widened and he coughed several times.

"Whew…" he breathed. "_Cold."_ Tasha was laughing so hard she almost fell out of her chair. She felt like a mother introducing her child to one of the greatest and most dangerous things in the universe; ice cream. But Data was a grown man, and seeing a grown man get his first brain freeze was quite hilarious.

"Data," she laughed. "You have to eat ice cream a little slower. Other wise you'll get a brain freeze."

"That term certainly describes what it felt like," Data replied.

"Try it again. _Slowly_."

"I will remember the '_slowly,_'" Data said. He tried it again, and his eyes widened again, but this time in pleasure. "It is wonderful!" he exclaimed. He immediately began drinking again.

"In that case, I better get in there before you drink it all," Tasha said, sticking a straw into the thick shake. They both drank, although they were concentrating more on each other than the taste of the milkshake.

Data finally laughed in the middle of a gulp and stopped drinking. "Please don't make me laugh while I'm drinking! I don't want to experience liquid coming out of my nose!" he giggled.

"I wasn't trying to!" Tasha laughed. "I was just looking at you!"

"Then you must _stop _looking at me until we have finished."

"I wish I could." Tasha put her elbows on the table and propped her chin up on her fists. She leaned forward. "But I can't keep my eyes off you. You're too handsome."

Data mimicked her position and leaned forward as well. She giggled as he got closer. "Then I suppose I'll have to try to not laugh while I'm drinking. Otherwise we'll never finish." He took the straw in his mouth again and Tasha did the same.

* * *

"Look at them," Beverly said incredulously. "They're like young people in love!" She and Picard watched Data and Tasha from the farthest, hidden table across the room.

"They _are_ young people in love," Picard said. "Data barely looks thirty, and I know Tasha was still incredibly young when she died." He sighed heavily. "I wish I could figure out why Q is doing this. Why did he bring them both back? It is completely unlike Q to do something nice just because he wants to _be_ nice."

"That sure seems to be the case though, doesn't it?" Beverly smiled as she watched them again. They had ended up laughing again in the middle of finishing their dessert. "But it sure is fun to watch the two of them together."

"Indeed," Picard agreed with her.

* * *

"So what had you been doing for however many years I was gone?" Tasha asked Data as the waiter came to pick up the empty glass.

"I worked on the _Enterprise_, learned to play the violin and the clarinet, worked some more." He looked thoughtfully at the ceiling behind Tasha, pretending to really think. "Worked," he continued. "Worked, and worked."

Tasha laughed. "And you got funny." Data smiled and shook his head.

"I'm simply telling you the answer to your question."

"Sounds like you had lots of fun."

"I had no concept of fun at the time," Data told her. "I was an emotionless piece of walking, talking software." He smiled. "But I did have some good times with Geordi. We used to go to the holo deck and go sailing, or go to tropical planets, and many other places." Data snapped his fingers. "Oh, and I learned to dance."

Tasha looked surprised. "Really? Who taught you?"

Data opened his mouth to speak but abruptly closed it. He remembered Dr. Crusher telling him not to tell anyone that she had taught him to dance. She had feared she might be called the "Dancing Doctor"…again.

"A friend."

Tasha nodded. "I never learned to dance. I was always busy with something. Would you teach me? I certainly have free time now."

Data looked surprised, but pleased. "Of course." He stood, offered her his hand and pulled her up out of her chair. "Bartender," he called. "Could you play a song?"

"Which song?" the bartender called back.

"Any song," he decided.

"You want to dance here? Now?" Tasha asked.

"Why not? There is no one here," Data said, looking around the room. The jazzy music began to play. Data stepped with her into the middle of the room. He took her right hand in his right hand, placed her left hand on his shoulder, and put his left hand against her waist. "Now this foot…and this way…"

"I think I got the hang of it," Tasha said. She stumbled. "I think."

"Maybe we should go a little slower," Data suggested and they stopped. "Could you play a slower song?" Data called to the bartender. They waited until the music began to play again, this time at a much slower pace.

Data listened to it, then said. "This is the Unchained Melody, written and performed by the Righteous Brothers of the mid 1960's."

"How did you know that?" she asked him. "I've never even heard of it."

"I recognized it," he said, smiling warmly. "And it's perfect."

The words of the melody began making their way into the hearts of the dancers. Tasha no longer worried about her feet. They seemed to be moving on their own. Her hand moved out of his, and she wrapped her arms around him, her hands coming up his back. She drew closer with each note, until she was cradled against his chest, her head against his heart. He rested his head gently atop her head, and they swayed together as one with the music.

"_Oh my love, my darling  
I've hungered for your touch  
A long lonely time,  
And time goes by so slowly  
And time can do so much,  
Are you still mine?  
I need your love,  
I need your love  
God speed your love to me._

_Lonely rivers flow to the sea, to the sea,  
To the open arms of the sea, yeah!  
Lonely rivers sigh "wait for me, wait for me"  
I'll be coming home,  
Wait for me._

_Oh my love, my darling  
I've hungered,  
Hungered for your touch  
A long lonely time,  
And time goes by so slowly  
And time can do so much,  
Are you still mine?  
I need your love, I...  
I need your love.  
God speed your love to me."_

* * *

Beverly and Jean-Luc listened to the music as it floated through the room. They watched the two dancers that were enraptured with each other sway with the music. They both watched, and said nothing.

They waited, in awe, until the music finally came to an end. The two stopped, but didn't move from their positions. Data only drew Tasha closer to him.

"I told you it was perfect," they heard him say quietly. Picard saw the bartender smile at the two, and put another slow love song over the speakers. All the employees stood smiling behind the counter watching the couple. They played one after another, for everyone in the room seemed mesmerized by the two. And each didn't seem to notice anyone or anything else except the other.

Tasha pulled back from Data for a moment, and gazed up at him. There was light sparkling in her warm brown eyes. She looked as if she were about to cry. Data lay his hand against her face, stroking her cheek with his thumb. He leaned down and kissed her gently, then passionately. The harmony around and between them flew and soared, just as it always had.

They took each other's hand. Data nodded his thanks to the bartender, and the two silently left the room. Jean-Luc and Beverly watched them leave from the shadows. They had never known they had been there.

Beverly was quiet. "They're so in love," she whispered. "It's beautiful."

Normally Jean-Luc would have dismissed the comment. Women to him tended to be a little too caught up in the romantic side of things. But this time, he agreed with her. It was a beautiful thing.

* * *

For once that night, they felt true love. There were no regrets, no hazy fevers clouding their minds and hearts. From that night on, they would never leave the other's side. They would be together forever and for always, for today, tomorrow, and eternity. Nothing could tear them apart.

* * *

A mechanical beeping sounded. Data blinked sleepily. It was morning already. And his doorbell was ringing.

He sighed and rose from the bed and went to answer the door. The captain stood there, holding Spot. He looked around Data and into the room.

"I hope I wasn't interrupting anything…_important_," Jean-Luc said sarcastically. "I was just wondering if you wanted your cat back."

"Oh…yes thank you, Captain." He smiled and took the cat and began walking back into the room.

"Data," Picard called. "Remember that we're leaving in three hours."

"I know," he called back. The door shut, and Picard sighed. He hoped Data was still as good at following commands. If he wasn't, he knew he'd have trouble getting him to stay at his post during work hours.

"Tasha," Data whispered. Tasha yawned and rolled over to look into his face. Data smiled and sighed, just looking at her. "I could sit here looking at you all day…but the _Enterprise _is leaving soon."

She nodded and pulled herself out of bed, stretching and yawning. "I have breakfast for you," he said, leading her to the table.

"You _made_ breakfast?" she asked. "You _cooked_?"

He smiled as an answer. She stared at him in awe. Of all the men in the world that she had ever had anything to do with, not _one_ had cooked. Ever. "Wow," was all she could manage.

* * *

"All right, everyone," Picard said. "Let's go." He led the way to the ship. Data and Tasha walked onboard hand in hand, looking around. Data recognized everything on the _U.S.S. Enterprise __E_. It was just the way it was when he had left. Tasha, on the other hand, was marveling at all the changes. It was an entirely new ship to her.

"Stations," Picard ordered, immediately snapping into his "captain" mode. "Prepare to leave docking bay."

Data immediately let go of Tasha's hand with an apologetic smile and went straight to his place at the console. Picard had already contacted Star Fleet and cleared up the situation concerning Data coming back to resume his Star Fleet duties, and his place was there waiting for him. And because Tasha had requested, he had promised her he would do the same for her.

They all watched as the _U.S.S. Titan _pulled away with them from the docking bay. The ship would be traveling alongside them for the three days it would take them to get to arrive at their next mission's destination.

"We have cleared the docking bay, sir," the ensign informed Picard. He nodded.

"Set course for Sector 459, Warp 6," Picard said. He lifted his hand in preparation. Data turned and watched the captain with a smile. "Engage," he declared.

Data smiled. "It's good to hear you say that again," he said. The captain smiled.

"Glad I could be of assistance," he said with a short, happy nod.


	7. Chapter 7

_**No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!!! But how I love it so... I also do not own any of the random songs that I stick in here. None of them. Uh uh. Nope.**_

* * *

Tasha and Data sat together on a beach, far away from anything modern. Or at least, to them it seemed far away. They had agreed to spend the evening together on the holo deck, and Tasha had offered to take Data to one of her favorite places; the beaches of the island Maui in Hawaii of earth. She said that she had been there once as a little girl, and that she had loved it. Now she looked at it as a chance to get away from work for a little while.

"I regret not getting to know you better before. Both of us always seemed to be absorbed in our work," Data said as they walked along the water's edge.

"Let's not worry about that. Let's not look at what we didn't do. Let's look at now and spending time to get to know each other now."

"I agree," Data said. He paused. "While trying to learn the art of small talk, I observed that people often share memories and stories with each other. Or, they ask questions of each other, such as a favorite color or food."

"That's small talk for kids," Tasha told him. "Grown people usually don't ask about favorite colors." She smiled. "What _is _your favorite color, Data?"

"But didn't you just say that-"

"It doesn't matter. Well?" she asked, smiling even wider.

Data cocked his head at her, returning her smile. "In all my life I have never seen you act so silly." He shook his head in wonderment, thought, then said, "Orange."

Tasha stopped, looking very surprised. "_Orange?_"

"I know that people usually say such things as 'blue' or 'red,' but I like orange."

"Why?"

He thought about it for a moment. "It is very bright, it stands out…and it is the color of Spot."

"Who's Spot?"

"My cat."

Tasha threw back her head and laughed and continued walking again. "Data…you're a very funny person."

"Should I take that as a compliment?"

She giggled. "Yes." He smiled.

"In that case, thank you."

"You're welcome." They grew silent and stopped to watch the sunset fading along the edge of the ocean in the distance. They waited until it had completely vanished, and it began to get dark. Tasha sighed. "That was beautiful." She turned to look at Data. He was still watching the fading colors in awe. "I never thanked you for teaching me to dance."

He smirked. "I'm sure if I would call what we did 'dancing.' More along the lines of turning in small circles. But you're welcome." He looked around and sighed in disappointment. "It's getting dark. We should go."

Tasha nodded in agreement. "We should have extended the program. It's still early in the evening."

Data stared out at the ocean, thinking. "We haven't had dinner yet. Perhaps we could do that." Tasha nodded in agreement.

"All right. Let's go." He followed her.

"Tasha, why don't we have dinner there, on the holo deck?" he asked.

"Well…all right."

He analyzed her clothing with a sigh, then looked down at his own black shirt and gave the same disapproving facial expression. "We are not dressed appropriately." He took her hand and led her to his quarters.

"Computer," he said as soon as they had walked in the door of his quarters. "Replicate mid 1950's male and female clothing." The computer complied with a series of mechanical beeps. As soon as the clothes had materialized, Data handed the clothing to Tasha. "Go put these on," he said with a grin.

"What are we doing?" Tasha asked, completely confused by his actions. "Where are we going that we need to change into _these_?" she said, holding the pink skirt up in dislike.

"Trust me," he said as he walked into the other room. "You'll like it."

"Have you even _been_ there before?" she asked incredulously.

"No," he called. "But just please trust me."

Tasha sighed. She dressed quickly, then patiently waited as Data came out a few minutes later. She immediately began laughing.

"What?" he said. He smiled and looked down at the white shirt and black leather jacket he was wearing, complete with jeans and shoes she had never seen before in her life. "Don't you think I look…" He smoothed back his already slick hair, pretending to act stylish. "'Cool?'"

She laughed. "Now _you're_ the one who's acting silly." She still stared down at his shoes. "And what are _those?_"

He glanced at his footwear. "From my knowledge, they are called 'tennis shoes.' Very typical footwear of the mid 1950's and many other eras."

She nodded. "Oh." He took her hand and led her back to the holo deck.

With a secretive grin, Data said, "Computer, run program 09427."

"Program loaded. You may enter when ready," the computer bleeped. They walked through the doors into a world Tasha had never seen before.

It was late in the evening. Tasha knew from her grandmother's stories that they were standing outside of a parking lot. There were cars everywhere, along with a huge screen in front of which they were all parked.

Data looked around. "Something is missing…computer, provide a car please. 1950's Mustang…convertible." The computer bleeped again and provided the sports car for them. Data hopped into the front seat without using the door.

"Do you even know how to drive?!" Tasha asked, getting in as well.

"I have studied schematics and diagrams…but no. I have never actually operated an automobile," Data confessed. "But I'm sure we'll be fine. If I begin to crash, the computer will take over control for me."

"That's reassuring," Tasha muttered. He put a hand on the steering wheel, running his fingers over it. His face grew more and more excited as he reached for the keys to turn on the primitive machine. Tasha stopped him. "Maybe…maybe you should test drive first before we go maneuvering around _other_ cars," she advised.

"All right." He laughed as he looked at her face. "Don't _worry_ so much! It'll be fun!"

She smiled a little. "Okay. But when you're done it's _my _turn."

"Fair enough." He started the engine. They both almost jumped out of their seats as the car roared to life underneath them. "Now, from the instructions I once read, I should put it in reverse, and then slowly 'give it gas.'" He looked around. "Ah. The 'stick shift.' I'm assuming that to put the automobile in reverse I should move to the letter 'R' on the 'stick shift.'" He moved it, turned around to look where he was going, then proceeded to give it a "little" gas.

"Aaaaahhhh!!!" Tasha yelled as they catapulted backwards. Data immediately lifted his foot from the gas pedal. He was laughing hysterically. Tasha ended up joining him, all the while insisting that it "wasn't funny."

"Ah…that was_ fun!_" Data exclaimed.

"Well don't do it again," Tasha told him, still laughing somewhat. "Just because we're having fun doesn't mean we can crash the car."

"Right," Data said, trying to focus on learning how to drive. "I will focus more on the 'slowly' this time." He turned around again and eased his foot onto the gas pedal. The car moved slowly backwards. Data continued watching and turned the steering wheel slowly and eased out of the drive-in movie theatre entry. He let off the gas, then tried to remember what to do next.

"Then I should put it in drive…the 'D' on the 'stick shift.'" He moved it again, and gave it gas again. Not satisfied with the speed they were moving at, he gave it more. Tasha put her hands in the air and shouted in joy as they flew down the quiet street.

A while after both Data and Tasha had gotten the hang of driving the car, they pulled back into the out door movie theatre.

"So…what do we do now?" Tasha asked, still a bit confused about what was supposed to be going on.

Data was about to speak when a man came next to their car. "Can I get you anything sir?" he asked.

"Two hamburgers please," he told the man. A few minutes later he came hurrying back with the food. Data handed one to Tasha, then gazed down upon his.

"Are you going to eat it?" she asked.

He smiled, never taking his eyes off the food. "In all my life I have never eaten what is considered 'junk food.' I am both honored and disgusted by what I am about to consume." He picked it up in his hands. "How can heart attacks and pleasure be between the same two pieces of bread?"

Tasha shook her head at him. "One isn't going to kill you," she told him. He began to say something else, but she cut him off. He would probably tell her that it would build over time or some other logical statement. "Just eat it."

He took one very small bite out of it. And just as he had done with the milkshake…

"This is _wonderful_!" he exclaimed. "I do believe that this is the greasiest piece of food I have ever eaten!" He took a gigantic bite out of the burger.

Tasha sighed. "I should really prohibit you from eating anymore foods with lots of calories."

"How can something so wonderful be so bad for you?" he asked.

Tasha shook her head, smiling. "Just another of the wonders of our universe." Data looked down at the grease-ridden patty in awe. She laughed and they ate together, dwelling in their happiness.

* * *

Data hummed happily as he strode down the hallway towards Tasha's quarters with a single rose in his hand. He arrived at the door, routinely pressed the button, and heard a faint "come in" from the other side of the door. 

"Hi," he greeted her happily. But he noticed something on her face…in her eyes. "Tasha? What's wrong?"

She sighed. "I'm sorry Data but I really don't want to have dinner tonight."

"Why not?"

She glared at the wall as if it had something to do with it. "Captain Picard just contacted me. Star Fleet refused my request to re-enter. They think I've been gone for too long. I would have to go through most of the Academy courses all over again."

Data looked at the rose in his hand. Though he knew he should comfort her, he didn't exactly know how. He set the flower on the table and went across the room to meet her. "I'm sorry, Tasha."

She said nothing, and walked away from him, staring out the window. "I just want to be alone for now."

He struggled to restrain himself in insisting upon staying. He knew he could get her mind off the negative news if she would just let him stay. "But, Tasha-"

"Data," she cut him off sharply, her tone getting angry. "Please. I want to be left alone."

"You…you don't want to talk about it?"

"No!" she said loudly. "I don't! I doubt you could even comprehend the, the emotional _distress_ I'm feeling right now! Star Fleet was my career and my _life_, and they've taken it _away_ from me!"

"Star Fleet was my career too," he said defensively. "It means a lot to me too. I _can_ feel emotion now. I _can_ understand!"

"But you haven't lost it, have you?" she shot back. "You were granted entrance again. _You got your life back I didn't!_"

"That's why I'm here. To comfort you," he tried to tell her.

"I don't want your comfort. I want you to get out and leave me alone."

"But-"

"_Out!"_ she shouted. She spun on her heel and stormed into the other room. "_Just leave me alone!_"

Data stood in the middle of the room, stunned. He gazed with hurt eyes into the other room, but finally turned and walked out of the room, tears beginning to fill his eyes. He had never in his life been in a fight that had provoked such an emotional response in him. He had never been so hurt by a loved one.

* * *

Outside the ship and across the stars, a streak of brightness flew beyond the planets. It weaved and descended, slowed, stopped, and started again. But it suddenly began to accelerate, almost with anticipation. It soared toward another blur of glowing light ahead of it, barely visible in the vacuum of space. 

The two met in the darkness, entwining within each other. And though their voices could not be heard, they chanted together as one. After a thousand years, they were one.

"Together forever in life, in death;

Sworn to the other with every breath.

Be joined one together within the mortal,

And be joined forever within the immortal."

They sailed together towards two starships, toward love, toward peace, and a new life together.

"_Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime. Lead me, save me from my solitude_," their voices sang out. "_Say you want me with you here, beside you…_"

* * *

"Hello again Data!" Deanna said with a smile as she looked at his familiar face on her computer screen. 

"Hello Deanna," he said in a rather…quiet voice. "Could you come over to the _Enterprise_?"

"Of course," she said quickly, sensing the great sadness and hurt within her friend. She had to help in any way she could. "I'll be right over. Meet me in Transporter Room 2." He nodded and ended the transmission.

She let her husband know where she was going, then beamed onto Picard's ship. She greeted Data with a warm hug. She could tell he needed it.

"It's about Tasha," Data said, speaking softly as soon as they were within the safety of the sound proof walls of his old quarters. He sat heavily on his bed, and Deanna pulled up a chair in front of him. "We fought."

"About what?"

Data laughed and practically cried at the same time. "About nothing. She was angry…I shouldn't have tried to push her into talking about it. I thought I could make her feel better, but I was wrong. I shouldn't have _insisted…_"

"Data," she said gently. "It's all right. It's a part of being a couple. Couples fight."

"You and Captain Riker do not fight."

"Do you know that for a fact?" she asked him.

He paused. "I guess not."

She smiled, thinking to all the times she and Will _had_ fought…and just like Tasha and Data, about absolutely nothing. "We have fought so many times I can't even begin to count them. But we still love each other, and that is the point. You have to wait until you've both calmed down, then apologize to each other."

"But how do I know when she's not mad anymore?" He cringed at the memory. "She yelled at me to get out of her quarters. I only meant well."

"I'm sure you did but…Data, when people are mad and they want to be left alone, it's usually best to respect their wishes."

Data nodded. "I'll definitely remember that next time." He sighed, keeping his eyes focused on the floor. "I've been yelled at before, but I have never felt such an emotional response from a dispute."

Deanna leaned forward and looked up into his face, causing him to look up as well. She smiled reassuringly. "It's hard to be hurt by a loved one. But you'll get through it, because you still love each other." He nodded again, but it wasn't good enough for her. "Come on, Mister. Let's see a smile."

He gave her a small smile, then, as if the action were contagious, he smiled a larger, more genuine grin. "I do believe you are my mother _and _my friend."

She laughed. "I do believe you are right." She planted a small kiss on his cheek as she stood and turned to leave. "Good night, Data."

He smiled brightly. "Good night, Deanna. Thank you, again."

* * *

Deanna walked happily down the hallway back to the Transporter Room, glad that she had helped another friend. She giggled to herself at Data's comment of her being so motherly to him. In a sense, she did feel as if she was mothering him, but felt it was only right that she did. He needed to be guided through different experiences that he would go through as a human, and what better person to guide him than his friend and counselor? Yet the thought itself brought her amusement. 

She had been looking down at the floor in her recent memories, and when she looked up she was startled. There was a girl, standing in the middle of the corridor. She was wearing a long, white dress, and her wavy brown hair hung loose about her pale shoulders. She stood looking at Deanna with large brown eyes that almost seemed black.

"Hello," Deanna said. "Are you lost?" She couldn't help glancing at the girl's unusual clothing.

The girl said nothing, but walked toward her. She had absolutely no facial expressions whatsoever. Deanna was confused by this girl; she could sense all her emotions, yet…they were somewhat faded.

Deanna was about to ask who she was, but the girl came closer. She did not stop at all. She walked right into her.

"_Hello," the girl said, smiling. _

_Deanna found herself in a dark place, with no lights except for one that seemed to be above her. She was in a chair, with her hand behind her. She could not move them, though. She realized they were tied to the chair, and so were her feet._

"_Who are you?" she asked the girl. "Where are we?" She couldn't help but be a bit frightened at the fact that she was in a dark empty room, tied to a chair, with no one but this strange young woman._

_The girl only answered her first question…though it made no sense to her. "I am Christine. And so are you."_

"_No," Deanna corrected her. "I am Deanna Troi."_

_The girl walked closer. "You are Christine."_

"_No, I am Deanna," Deanna insisted. She fought the slow, cold influence that seemed to be taking over her. The girl seemed to be attempting to enter her consciousness, but she set up a mental barrier. She refused to let the girl in. Yet, something inside her loosened. She let down a brick from her wall._

"_You are Christine," the girl said. "We, are Christine."_

* * *

**I would like to thank everyone who has so generously sent me comments on my story. I appreciate every one of you and your encouragements!**_  
_

* * *


	8. Chapter 8

Data silently went to his closet and put away his uniform. He put his communicator on the table without making a sound. He pulled off his shoes and placed them carefully next to his closet.

He was still getting into the habit of "getting ready for bed." He had slept before, but he had never tossed and turned. So, he had never had to take off his uniform or his communicator. But somehow tossing and turning and rearranging himself in bed came with human sleep, and in turn wrinkled his uniform and sometimes accidentally activated his communicator.

He pulled his pajamas over his head and crawled sleepily up into his bed. One thing he enjoyed about sleep now rather than when he had been an android was the comfort of finally getting into a soft, warm bed at the end of the day.

He let himself fall into the pillows, reveling in their cushiness. He sighed heavily and allowed his eyelids to slide closed. He lay there for a few moments, but then groaned and drove himself out of bed and into the other room. He had forgotten to brush his teeth.

After doing so, Data picked up his cat from the floor, where she was trying to get his attention by attempting to trip him and weaving between his legs, and trudged back to the bedroom. He was startled to find a man standing in the middle of his room. He almost dropped his cat in his haste to reach for his communicator on the table three feet away. The man looked very strange; he was dressed in all black, with a long black cloak wrapped around his shoulder and his dark hair was combed back. But the feature that struck Data as the most strange was the peculiar white mask that only revealed half his face. His eyes were black and angry.

"Security to Deck 2 Room 3653," he said quickly. "Intruder alert!" The man marched purposefully towards Data, his hand outstreached. Data backed up steadily until he reached his desk and felt the cold, hard surface against the back of his legs. Reaching behind him, he fumbled for his phaser, which he had left on the top of his desk. He found it and fired at the man.

The man stopped as the weapon's beam went into his chest…and out the other end. Data's jaw fell open in surprise. The phaser's beam had not affected the man at all. It had only distracted him, and he did not stay distracted for long. The man's eyes went from the place on his chest were the usually harmful beam had gone through, to Data's surprised face. There was a moment of silence, then the man smiled slyly and closed the gap between him and Data and disappeared within him.

The phaser in Data's hand dropped to the floor, and Data fell to his knees, his shaking hands clutching his head.

_He sat in a dark place, his hand and legs tied to the chair he was sitting in. He instinctively struggled against the restraint to no avail. There was no light except for one that seemed to be above him. The man that had been in his quarters stood before him, still smiling in a crafty way._

_Data stared at him curiously. "Where are we?" he asked. "What's going on?"_

_The man knelt down to Data's level, the peculiar white mask that covered half his face glowing eerily in the light above them._

_"We are in the same place we were before," the odd man told him. He gave no further answer._

_"Who…are you?" Data asked, afraid that this person would give him the same sort of vague and odd answer he had just given him._

_"I am…the Opera Ghost," the man said in a whispery voice._

_"That is your name?" Data asked. It sounded more like a title to him than a name. _

_The man scowled suddenly, looking a little angry. "My name is Erik." The shrewd smile returned to his face again, along with his smooth tone. "You are Erik as well."_

_"No, I am Data," Data told him._

_"You are Erik," the man said a little more forcefully. He obviously didn't have much patience. He glared at Data, and the roped around his wrists and ankles tightened. Data ignored the discomfort and set his mouth in a tight, stubborn line._

_Erik waited for Data's answer, but he received none. He turned angrily around and swept his hand about the dark room. Images followed his hand's movement, appearing one by one. Data recognized himself in each of the images, but did not recall any of the situations he was appearing in. _

_In one image, he sang seductively to a young, fair girl, leading her through a series of hallways and passageways. The light of the torch he was holding in the image suddenly revealed the young woman's face._

_"Deanna…?" he exclaimed in surprise._

_"No," the man said. "She is Christine." He looked at Deanna with longing. "Christine…" he whispered sadly. He turned back to Data. "And you are Erik."_

_"I am…not."_

_Erik scowled at him, and the roped grew tighter and tighter. They grinded painfully into his skin, and he cried out as they continued to tighten. _

_"Who are you?" the man growled._

_"I am Data!" he shouted._

_"Who are you?!" the man shouted back. The roped tightened with impossible strength. Data cried out again as he felt the blood drip from his arms and hands._

_All of a sudden, he didn't feel the pain anymore. Something…something was in him; a cold wave of emptiness. He tried to fight it, but it washed over his entire being, and he was powerless to stop it. His stressful breaths slowed. The emptiness slowly began to turn. It told him who he was. _

_"Now…" Erik whispered, leaning closer until he was eye to eye with Data. _

_The ropes that bound him fell to the floor. With a free, bruised hand, he reached up to touch the right side of his face. There was a smooth surface there, covering his skin._

_It was a mask._

"_Tell me…who are you?"_

_"I am…I am…" he stuttered, trying to decide. One part of him told him he was Data, and he was still in his room, though barely aware of it. But a strong, distinct voice told him otherwise. The voice was his own. He listened to it, and shut out the softer voice._

_He looked up to meet the man's eyes. "I am Erik." _

_The man only smiled._

* * *

Worf and two of his security officers rushed into Data's quarters only a minute after the communication had been transmitted. He looked around, and then saw Data crumpled up on the floor in front of his desk. A phaser lay inches from his senseless hand.

"Worf to Dr. Crusher," Worf said.

"Crusher here," came the response.

"We are in need of your assistance in Data's quarters," he informed her. When she arrived a few moments later, she scanned Data for any injuries or anything peculiar that might explain how he had come to be unconscious on his floor. She found none.

"Have there been any unauthorized entries?" Beverly asked Worf, still scanning.

"None," he replied. She put on a thoughtful frown as she revived him. His eyes opened slowly, and they helped him sit up.

"What happened?" Worf asked him immediately.

Data looked around, disoriented. "I thought I saw someone in my room," he told them.

"There have been no unauthorized entries in the last two hours," Worf said. "No one has been here except you and Counselor Troi. And I am assuming you let her in," he added, doubting that Deanna would break into Data's room.

Data looked at Worf as if just remembering that Deanna had come to his quarters less than ten minutes ago.

"Maybe you just need some sleep," Beverly said in a way that meant it was not simply a suggestion.

"Yes," Data agreed with her. He got to his feet and Worf, still looking puzzled by the entire situation, left the room with his two equally as baffled security officers. Beverly stayed behind.

"Data, what _really_ happened?" she asked him, concerned. "You can't expect me to believe that you thought you saw a ghost and then fainted from fright." She seemed quite determined to get her explanation, and stood there waiting for it.

Data looked her straight in the eye with a completely calm face. "It is exactly what you said, Doctor Crusher. I need sleep. I was imagining things. I have no other explanation." He silently waited for her reaction.

She only sighed, still not satisfied. "I guess I'll have to believe you." She laid a friendly hand on his shoulder. "Sleep well, Data."

He nodded, and she was gone. He stood there a few moments, thinking over what she had said. Then he walked about his quarters. He observed everything; every book, every piece of equipment, every detail of his room. He turned on his computer and explored the files. He flipped through the books on his shelf, reading a few paragraphs here and there before carefully putting it back in its place. When he was finally bored, he stared out the window. He reviewed all the things that had happened within the past few minutes. With a smirk, he sang softly, "_The Phantom of the Opera is here…inside my mind..._"

* * *

Deanna found herself on the floor of the _Enterprise_ hallway. Oddly, there was no one around or hovering around her, so she guessed she had only been down for a couple of seconds.

She picked herself up and headed to the Transporter Room, considering the situation the whole way. It bothered her that she had no memory of how she came to be there on the floor. She couldn't have slipped and fallen, and no one had tripped her. She didn't know why she would just fall to the floor, so she immediately dismissed that idea.

"Energize," she told Chief O'Brien as she stepped onto the platform. As soon as she had materialized on her ship, she saw her husband standing there with a smile, waiting for her. She stepped down and hugged him. "Hello handsome," she said.

"Hello beautiful," he replied. "Would you care for some dinner, Madame?"

"I very much would," Deanna said, playing along. The two walked arm in arm down the hallways to their quarters, and along the way, she told Will of her strange experience.

"Would you like to go to Sick Bay? Have some tests done?"

"That might give us a clue," Deanna said. "It would make me feel better to know why this happened."

"I suppose dinner will have to wait," Will said. They did an about-face and headed towards Sick Bay, ready to find some answers. Unfortunately, the doctor had none.

"I've run every test I can," she told them with an apologetic smile. "There's nothing abnormal or unusual anywhere that I can see. Maybe you'll just have to accept that you were exhausted, or that you slipped. I can't tell you anything else." She turned to Will. "Captain." Then she hurried off to tend to her other patients.

* * *

That night, Deanna tossed and turned in her bed. Images haunted her in her dreams, images she had never remembered doing or seeing. Images of an older man, struggling for breath on a sagging bed in a dusty room, telling her he loved her very much, and that an angel would keep her company.

"I love you, my dear daughter," he rasped.

"But father," she heard herself saying in a choked up voice of an eight-year-old. "Father I don't want you to go!"

"Oh my little Christine," he said, smiling. "An angel will keep you safe. An angel of _music_…" the dying father in the image hoarsely whispered to her.

Another image appeared. She was on a stage of some sort, all the lights and the attention focused on her, and an unseen crowd watching. She began to sing a song she had never heard before, yet somehow she knew every word, every twist in the melody and even the soprano's prideful ending where her voice soared above the crowd, and they applauded her fervently. Deanna literally felt the pride and the honor and joy of the experience onstage. She also felt the eyes of an unseen admirer upon her, watching her, smiling with approval from above.

Then she was back in her room again, her husband's warm body beside her. Reality snapped back, and suddenly she was frightened. She had thought that the stage, the people, her song…that _they_ were real. She had completely forgotten about this place; even about her husband. She _had_ been there. She _had_ done it!

Seconds later realism faded away again. She was back in a memory; hers or not, she remembered it vividly. There was a ghostly, seductive voice that seemed to come from everywhere at once, calling her away from her place in her dressing room. She called back, singing his song but saying her words, her questions.

_"Angel I hear you speak, I listen. Stay by my side, guide me. Angel my soul was weak, forgive me. Enter at last…Master."_

He answered again, singing the same melody. _"Flattering, child, you shall know me. See why in shadows I hide…look at your face in the mirror. I am there inside!"_ She felt herself turn to her mirror in the far end of the room, and saw the reflection of a man with half a white mask. He held out his hand, and she took it. She looked into his face…

Even in her sleep she jumped slightly. She recognized the man. But she did not recognize the way he was acting. Data's misty face appeared in her mirror, half covered by the smooth, white mask. Still, she could not resist his seductive voice. She slowly followed him as he led her by her hand. The touch of their skin was somehow right; she could feel the warmth and the familiarity there. He led her away into darkness, his music reaching into her soul.

She woke suddenly and sat bolt upright in bed, gasping. "Data?" she whispered. Completely forgetting about what time of night it was and about what her husband might think if he found her missing in the middle of the night, she got up, put on her night robe, and rushed down the hallway to the Transporter Room.

* * *

His door bell indicated someone wanted to see him. He walked to the door and opened it. Deanna stood there in the doorway. She looked distressed.

"Data," she said quickly. "You're up still?"

"Of course," he replied.

"Something's very, very wrong."

"What is it, my dear?" he said, concern in his voice. She peered at him curiously.

"My _dear_?" she repeated. She waved it off. "Data I can't…I don't…" She sighed, frustrated, and tried to put together comprehensible words for what she was feeling. "Data something happened when I was on my way back to my ship. Someone… A girl!" she recalled. "There was a girl in the hallway, and she walked straight into me. Then I was in a dark place. And she was there. She's trying to take over me with her memories…" She trailed off, looking closely again. "Are you even listening to me?"

He gazed at her. "Of course I am, Christine."

"Data, my name is Deanna," she said as if he were stupid.

"No, your name is Christine," he replied in the same tone, as if she should know if her name had suddenly been changed while she slept.

She stared at him. "That's what the girl told me. She told me my name is Christine."

"Well, she's right," he said, leaning against the doorway, smiling.

She gawked at him. "What?" She shook her head. "Data, what are you _talking_ about?"

His smile disappeared, he shut his eyes, and slammed his hand into the wall. Deanna jumped a little upon the sound. She had never seen Data use such an act of aggression or anger. "Why does everyone keep calling me that?" he asked angrily. "My name is Erik!"

Deanna looked and felt very bewildered. She didn't know what was going on. Was it just her? Was it the two of them? Was it everyone on the _ship_?

"Well," she said slowly. "Everyone on this ship thinks your name is Data."

"Do they now?" he said sarcastically. He thought for a moment, then nodded his head. "Oh yes…yes they do don't they?" He smiled again. "I guess I'll just have to play along."

"Play along with _what_?" Deanna said, really frustrated now. He was crazy, and she was pretty sure that she was next. "What is going _on_?!" She gasped suddenly, clutching her head. "She's…she's doing it again."

"Doing what again?"

"She's trying to tear down the wall!" Deanna cried. "I can't let her get in…I can't let her take _over_…"

"You can," Data said softly. He gently but firmly clasped her wrists and pulled them away from the sides of her head. She stared at him, frightened beyond anything she had ever felt. "It's all right. _Let go…_" He began to sing. At first, Deanna gaped at him again, for it was very odd that he would start to sing at a time like this.

But then again, it somehow felt right. His eyes were the same, his voice was all the same… She listened to him, and wall fell.

"_Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams…purge all thoughts of the life you knew before. Close your eyes let your spirit start to soar…_" he sang. She smiled.

"_Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime. Say the word and I will follow you. Say you need me with you now and always_," she sang to him, as if in a trance.

"_Anywhere you go let me go too," _he crooned_. "Christine, that's all I ask of you…" _Enchanted by his voice, she drew closer.

"_Love me, that's all I ask of you," _they sang softly together, their faces almost touching in a kiss.

* * *

Will yawned as his alarm went off. He turned over to kiss his wife good morning, and found she wasn't there. He abruptly sat up. "Deanna?" he called, hoping she'd appear from somewhere else in their quarters. "Deanna?!" He got up and walked around, but didn't find her. "Computer locate Deanna Troi."

"Deanna Troi is not aboard the _Titan,_" the computer told him in its monotone voice. Will grabbed his communicator off the table and said loudly into it, "Lt. Benson has there been any transports off this ship during the night?"

"One sir," the lieutenant told him. "Deanna Troi transported off to the _Enterprise_ three hours ago."

Will sighed in relief. "Thank you Lieutenant." He put down the communicator and sat down in a chair. "What is she _doing_ over there?" he said to himself. "Captain Troi to Counselor Troi," he said, trying to contact her.

There was a pause. "Yes…Will?"

"Deanna what are you doing over there?" Will asked his wife. "And why didn't you let me know you were leaving?"

Another pause. "I'm sorry. Data and I were discussing something important."

"For _three__hours_?" he asked her.

A third pause. "It was very important, Will. He…had another nightmare."

He sighed. "When do you expect to be back?"

A _fourth_ pause. "Soon. In about five minutes."

"All right. I'll see you then. Troi out." He deactivated his communicator, then repeated the situation to himself. "She's been discussing something important with Data for the last three hours?"

* * *

"Who is this Will?" Data asked protectively. "Why is he so interested in you?"

"He's my husband, Erik," she told him sorrowfully.

Data's face became angry again. "He will not take my love from me!"

"No, he won't," Deanna said, smiling. "But you mustn't harm him," she pleaded.

He melted at the sight of her innocent face. He softly touched her hair. "All right, my dear. I will not harm him. But only for you." He leaned down to kiss her again. Deanna closed her eyes and dissolved within his touch…but she pulled back.

"I must go," she said sadly again. "Wait for me, Erik. I shall be back." He looked sorrowfully after her, watching as the door closed behind her. He sat upon the bed, staring at the door, counting the moments until she arrived again to meet him.

* * *

Will waited in the Transporter Room as his wife transported aboard. He smiled and offered her a hand as she stepped down from the platform, then walked together back to their quarters for the evening.

"So what was the 'important thing' that you and Data were talking about? This dream?" he asked her.

"Well, it was…about Tasha," she said a little uneasily.

"Tasha? What was the matter?"

"They fought," she told him. Will waited for more, but there was no further answer.

"Did he say what about?"

"About nothing. They fought about nothing."

Will chuckled. "Ah. The thing that everyone fights about." Deanna smiled.

"So…" Will noticed that his wife was unusually quiet. He tried to start a conversation. "What would you like for dinner tonight?"

"Dinner? Oh, um…it really doesn't matter to me."

He looked surprised. Usually when he offered to cook she gave him her entire menu of what she wanted. "Really?"

"Yes."

"Are you not hungry even for breakfast?"

She thought for a moment. "No, I'm hungry. I just don't care what we eat."

"How about something with chocolate in it?" he asked with a big smile, looking down at her, waiting for her joyous reaction.

"All right," she said impassively. He gawked at her. She looked back at him. "What?"

"I honestly thought you'd be jumping up and down."

"Why?"

He gawked at her again. "You _love_ chocolate!" She looked at him for a moment.

"Oh. I know…I guess I'm just a little distracted."

"I'll say…but what about?"

"About Data."

"What about him?"

She searched for the right words. "I guess it's just that I didn't want to leave him quite yet. He wasn't ready. And I'm trying to think of what to say next time I see him."

Riker looked concerned for his friend. Maybe being human and having fought with Tasha had had more of an impact on Data than he had realized. "Was it that bad?"

She nodded, and they walked into their quarters silently. He glanced at her as he began getting the table ready. "You sure are quiet tonight. You're definitely distracted. But I think I can succeed in doing the same thing." He turned to the replicator by the table and ordered a double chocolate fudge cake. Smiling, he placed the heaping dessert onto the table.

She looked at it in awe. "We're having sweets for breakfast?"

"Why not?" he said. "You seem like you need it."

She smiled. "It sure is big."

"That it is." He took a slice out of the cake and put it on her plate. She smiled down at it. "Aren't you going to eat it?" he asked her, putting a slice on his own plate.

"Yes," she replied. She sighed happily and picked up her fork and shoved it into the squishy, chocolaty goodness and put it in her mouth, savoring the taste. "I never remember anything tasting so good!" she exclaimed. "Not since I was a little girl with my father."

Will smiled. "So you inherited your love of chocolate from him?"

Deanna suddenly looked sad. "Oh…I miss him. I wish he were somehow here again, playing his violin for me, for the angel…" She sighed in memory. Will looked confused. "Who? You're father played the violin for who?"

Deanna suddenly looked nervous and smiled quickly. "Oh nothing, just um for my mother. She was always his angel." Before Will could ask another question, she shoved a heaping pile of cake into her open mouth.

* * *

Data came walking onto the Bridge that morning and sat at his console without a word.

"Good morning Mr. Data," Picard said.

"Good morning," he replied. He stared at the panel in front of him for a brief moment, then began working it.

"Data," Picard said, leaning forward. "How is Tasha doing?"

"Tasha…" Data repeated, remembering. He met the captain's eyes. "Not well. She yelled at me excessively last night."

Picard winced. "I'm sorry. I couldn't do anything about it. It's Star Fleet's decision, not mine. I tried to influence them all I could but…apparently it had no effect."

Data nodded and went back to work. He didn't seem too worried about it, or about Tasha. Picard was confused. He had assumed that Tasha and Data were a couple, that they cared about each other. Data was not an android any longer…and Picard knew Data should have shown more concern for her and her situation.

"Have you talked to her yet today?" Picard asked.

"No," Data replied shortly. Picard took it as the "I-don't-want-to-talk-about-it-'no'," and said nothing more about it.

"La Forge to Bridge."

"Go ahead Geordi," Picard replied.

"Captain we could use Data's help down here. That is, if he's not needed up there."

Picard sighed, defeated. "Certainly." He nodded at Data, and Data left his console for Main Engineering. He and Geordi had been playing tug-o-war with Data ever since he had come back on the ship. Geordi always wanted his company in Engineering, and Picard wanted him to be present on the Bridge. But, Picard thought smugly, he would have Data on the Bridge during Geordi's mid day break, when he would leave to go to Ten Forward or his quarters to eat. Jean-Luc shook his head at the silliness of the game, but still planned for what he would have Data do when he arrived on the Bridge again after twelve hundred hours.

* * *

"Hey Data!" Geordi greeted his best friend.

Data acknowledged him with a nod. "Geordi." He looked around. "What is it that you need?"

Geordi looked at Data inquisitively. "Are you okay?"

"Yes."

Geordi continued to look at him. "What?" Data asked a little sharply.

Geordi looked a little taken back. "It's just…usually you're so cheerful. I was used to seeing you emotionless but not…unhappy."

Data thought, then said, "Tasha and I fought last night."

Geordi cringed. "Oo…sorry 'bout that. Was it bad?"

"Yes."

"What'd she say?"

"She yelled at me to get out," Data said shortly, slightly annoyed that Commander La Forge was just talking to him instead of giving him something to do. "Am I needed here?"

"Oh…right. Yeah, uh…" Geordi looked around Engineering, trying desperately to find something for Data to do. If he didn't, Picard would request that he be sent back up to the Bridge. "Here," he said. He led Data over to a computer panel. "You can monitor the Warp Core. We're running a few diagnostics on them right now. A few hours ago the engines dropped out of Warp speed, and we're trying to figure out if there's something wrong with the propulsion system."

Data nodded and manned the post. He and Geordi worked together for hours, trying to figure out the mystery with the ship's engines.

"I just don't get it," Geordi said, frustrated. "There's nothing wrong with _anything_. The ship wouldn't just drop out of Warp for no reason." He sighed. "The ship itself isn't forming an intelligence again…" He shook his head. "Any thoughts?" he asked Data.

"No." Data stared at the screen. "I don't understand it either."

There was silence. They both stared at the screen, thinking. Geordi turned to look at Data. "You've been very quiet today. No opinions, no suggestions…is there something else that's bothering you?"

Data met Geordi's gaze. "Do you have a problem with silence?"

"No…it's just unlike you, that's all. Before it was all we could do to get you to shut-"

"Bridge to Engineering," Picard's voice came over the intercom.

"Go 'head, Captain," Geordi said.

"You've been working hard," Picard said. "And it's the mid day break. I suggest you go get something to eat. Rest. Then you can come back and start fresh on your diagnostics."

"All right," Geordi said. "Come on, Data," he said.

"Data I need you to come to the Bridge," Picard said quickly before they could leave Engineering.

"What do you need me for?" Data asked. Geordi smiled. Picard wouldn't have a reasonable answer. He would get Data for lunch.

"I…" Picard paused. "I need you to…" A great sigh was heard. "Very well, Mr. Data. Go with Geordi. But when you are finished with your test results I want to hear them up here in my Ready Room."

"Yes sir," Geordi said with a laugh. "Good going, Data."

In Ten Forward, Guinan stopped by Data and Geordi's table. She set Geordi's usual drink in front of him. "Well well if it isn't Data," Guinan said, sitting down. She smiled her usual calm smile. "I had heard you were back. So. How are you?"

"Well," he answered. She nodded.

"And Tasha?"

"I don't know."

She chuckled. "It'll a take me a while to get used to a Data who uses contractions," she said. Geordi smiled. "What can we get you boys?"

"Red wine," Data said. Guinan raised her eyebrows, and looked at Geordi, almost asking him with her glance if it was all right with him.

Geordi looked equally as surprised, but shrugged. "He's over twenty-one, isn't he?"

Guinan still looked uneasy, but she complied. "All right." She rose from table, and left.

There was silence between them. Geordi was waiting for Data to say something, anything, but Data didn't even look at him. He stared out the window while tapping his fingers against the table's surface.

"Whatcha thinkin' about?" Geordi asked him quietly. He wanted to know what was wrong. Something was bothering his friend and he was determined to help.

"About love," Data replied in the same quiet tone. "And about-"

"Data?" Data and Geordi turned to see Tasha standing uncertainly a few feet away.

"What?" he asked sharply.

"I uh…I wanted to apologize for last night," she said, unhindered by his tone. "I was just angry. I didn't mean to hurt you in any way, and I know I did." She walked closer. "I'm very sorry."

He nodded. "All right." He turned away to look out the window again. "Now if you'll excuse me I'd like to be left alone for now."

"Oh. All right." She turned to leave, then paused. "I'll see you tonight?"

"No," he said. "I have plans."

Tasha pursed her lips together and nodded. "Then…I'll see you later." She walked dejectedly away and out of Ten Forward. Geordi set down his glass and stared at Data.

"What was _that_?" he asked Data. "You shoved her away!"

Guinan arrived and set the glass of wine before Data. He picked it up and immediately started drinking. "I'm with Geordi on this one. I thought you loved Tasha." Data didn't answer. He looked from Geordi to Guinan, at his glass, then abruptly got up from the table.

"I'd better get back to work," he said curtly. "Thank you for the wine, Guinan."

The two watched him leave. Guinan sighed. "Is it just me or is something different about Data? Or is that how he's always been since he became human?"

Geordi shook his head. "When we first met him at the Star base he was full of energy, always happy and cheerful…he and Tasha were always together, always flirting and laughing," Geordi recalled with a smile. "All of a sudden he's changed. I don't know what's gotten into him."

"Something's wrong," Guinan said quietly.

Geordi turned to look at her. "What do you think it is?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. But…something is definitely wrong."


	9. Chapter 9

Tasha walked slowly down the hallways. She had nothing to do. And all she could think about was Data. She recalled his cold words to her, and her eyes saddened. Perhaps it was her fault. She had been harsh to him, and now he probably felt he was returning her the favor.

Still, that was not like Data. Data was very forgiving, always happy and joyful. The Data she knew would have forgiven her in an instant, even though he had been hurt.

Tasha felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Guinan. "May I walk with you?" she asked. Tasha nodded. "I uh…heard about what happened with Star Fleet. I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Tasha replied. She studied Guinan's face. "I don't think I've met you."

"Guinan," Guinan introduced herself. "And you're Tasha Yar. I've heard a lot about you."

Tasha smiled. "Like what?"

Guinan smiled as she replied. "That you're a very caring, very loyal person and an outstanding officer." She smiled. "I also heard from several people how close you and Data have become."

Tasha's smile faded. "I don't know about that anymore. He came to see me after I learned about my career, and I wanted to be alone."

"Understandable," Guinan said.

"But he wanted to stay with me, to comfort me. He insisted, and I became angry and shouted at him." She shook her head. "I overreacted, and I hurt him. I tried to say sorry, but…he…didn't take it very well."

Guinan nodded. "I noticed." She was quiet, thinking. "It certainly doesn't sound like him, does it?"

"Not at all. I don't know what's going on, but something's different about him." She shook her head, trying to put words together. "He's not Data anymore. He's someone else. He's not the Data I know and love."

Guinan nodded. "I never got to meet Data as a human until tonight, but something told me that wasn't the real him either." She smiled at Tasha reassuringly. "Don't worry. We'll figure it out." Tasha smiled.

"Thank you, Guinan."

* * *

Deanna yawned as she walked over to her bed. She was about to sit on it and lie down when something red caught her eye. Looking down, she saw a single, deep red rose resting on her pillow. She smiled and picked it up, reading the note that accompanied it. 

My dearest,

I do hope that things are going well for you over there. I count the moments we are apart with pain in my heart, and I look forward to the next time we may see each other. I thank God daily for his greatest gift to me; you.

All my love,

Erik

She smiled and picked up the rose, running her fingers along it's smooth, green stem. Hearing activity in the other room, Deanna quickly hid the note and placed the rose gently upon her nightstand. Will walked in, yawning.

"Good night beautiful," he said kissing her. He pulled the covers over his back and fell silent.

Deanna sat up for many hours, thinking about her love, her Erik, and all the time they would spend together. For eternity.

* * *

Beverly walked about Sick Bay in her usual sophisticated manner, checking on patients and finishing up tests, doing the normal things that doctors do. 

Her thoughts revolved around Guinan, and what she had come to tell her last night. The woman suspected that there was something wrong with Data. He was acting a lot differently than he normally would. Beverly wouldn't have known, since she the last time she had seen Data he had been acting normally. But she had promised Guinan that she would call Data into Sick Bay and look him over in the morning.

"Crusher to Data," she said into her communicator as she bustled about her office, trying to locate long lost papers and at the same time fill out more.

"Yes?"

It might have been that Guinan's suspicions had influenced her, but Data _did_ sound a bit different. He sounded…impatient. Unhappy.

"Am I interrupting something?"

"No, not really. What is it?"

"I'd like you to come to Sick Bay. You're due for your annual checkup," she lied.

"All right." Then he was gone. A few minutes later he walked through the doors, dressed in black. It was still early in the morning, before the crew members were expected to be at their posts, so she wasn't surprised that he wasn't wearing his uniform. It was just that…she had never seen someone wear all black before, except when attending funerals. And as far as she knew no one had died recently.

Beverly ran her usual checkup scans quickly and routinely. Nothing seemed to be wrong. She performed all the tests she could, and still nothing showed up. No virus, no abnormalities, nothing that could possibly influence Data's behavior.

"Thank you very much Mr. Data you can go now," she said with a smile. Without so much as even a goodbye, he left. She frowned. "Well_something's_ wrong," she said to herself. "What is it?"

* * *

Deanna crept out of her quarters and down the hallway. She tried to act natural, like nothing was wrong or different. She smiled and greeted people she knew, and walked as quickly as she could without looking as if she were in a hurry to the nearest Transporter Room. 

She passed Will in the hallway. He stopped, giving her a strange look. "Where are you going?"

"To see Data," she replied. "I have an appointment with him today."

He looked very sad to see her go. "When will you be back?"

"Maybe in three or four hours," she said. He scowled.

"All that time with Data, huh?"

She laughed, pretending like it was a preposterous idea. "Of _course_ not!" she said. "I was planning to see go visit Beverly and the Captain as well."

"Better now than never I suppose," Will said. "Since we're leaving this afternoon. Have a good time. I'll see you tonight!" he called, continuing down the hallway to wherever he was headed.

"We're…_leaving_this afternoon?" Deanna called after Will.

"I thought you knew," Will said, turning to her again. "I announced it to all the crew members. We were going to spend three days traveling with the _Enterprise_ and then break off to head in our own direction to complete our next assignment." He cocked his head at her, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. "You honestly didn't know?"

"Oh! Oh yes…I'm sorry. I forgot," she told him. She smiled. "I'll see you tonight." And with that, she continued walking. Will stood there for a moment, wondering how his wife could have forgotten about their assignment. Still shaking his head, he continued on his way.

She walked into the Transporter Room, getting more upset with every minute. She stepped onto the platform, saying "energize" with great haste. The minute she arrived on the other ship Deanna practically ran off the platform. The Captain stood there, smiling.

"Hello Dea-"

"I'm really very sorry but I must go," she said quickly. She ran out of the Transporter Room. Picard looked after her, then glanced at Chief O'Brien. He shrugged and Picard crossed his arms in confusion.

* * *

After Picard had dismissed him for the mid day break, Data returned to his quarters. He stripped off his uniform and threw it to the floor in disgust. He absolutely despised every aspect of it; the design, the fit, and _especially_ the colors. The yellow was too bright for his liking. 

He walked bare-chested to his closet, and eyes all the clothes. None of them were completely black. And right now, he desired something black…and long. Yes, long. He needed…a cape. And a mask.

He ordered the computer to make him his clothes. They appeared instantaneously upon his bed. He smiled as he picked them up, fingering the velvet that lined the long, beautifully black cape. Data pulled the shirt over his head and the cape across his shoulders, feeling peaceful at last. He did not need a mask anymore, for his face was not deformed. The mask had always been a cover-up, and unwanted thing on his face, but oddly, he missed it now. But he did not ask the computer to replicate one.

With a contented sigh he sat at the organ he had asked the computer to replicate early that morning, and began to play loudly. He let his soul bath and bask in the coldness of the haunting melody, closing his eyes and absorbing himself in it.

All of a sudden, there was something against his legs. He looked down, annoyed that something had disturbed his moment of inspiration. It was an orange cat, and it meowed at him.

"Go away, you repulsive creature!" he spat angrily at the cat, who merely stared at him and rubbed harder, thrusting her head against his shin bone. He growled, and then gently pushed the cat away with his foot. He did not wish to harm her; she was just getting on his nerves. Yet moments later she was back. She jumped up onto his lap, and in trying to reach his face, stepped on the keys of the organ, making a horrible clang of random notes. Data clasped his hands over his ears, but managed to take them away for the second he needed to pull the cat off his beloved instrument and drop her on the floor.

"Computer!" he shouted angrily. "Feline supplement please!"

The computer sounded confused. "Please be more specific. There are over one hundred feline supplements on record."

Data growled in frustration. "Thirty two!" he said.

The computer responded and produced the cat food. Data picked it up out of the replicator and carried it to the other room, and put it on the floor. Spot meowed happily in response and began eating the food. Data closed the door behind her.

He sat down again with a sigh, and once again started to play. But he was interrupted by the door bell ringing. Fuming now, he stomped over the door and opened it. He was about ready to tear the person's head off, whoever it was, for disturbing him during his free time of inspiration.

"Christine," he said, surprised, and his tone automatically softened. She practically fell into his arms, breathing hard and beginning to cry.

"Erik we must hurry," she gasped. "They're leaving this afternoon."

"This afternoon?" Data repeated. He closed the door behind them and looked into her face. "Christine are you sure?"

"Yes! Will told me."

Data scowled. "That doesn't give us much time." He looked down at her terrified face and wiped the tears from her eyes. "Don't worry Christine. We'll be together, my love, I promise."

* * *

"I can't find _anything,_" Beverly told them. "That's just it. There's _nothing_that would explain his strange behavior." All the senior staff and Guinan sat around the table in the Observation Lounge, except for Data of course. He was the topic of their discussion. 

"I've got something I want you to hear," Guinan said after a moment. She put a chip into the small computer panel at the table and pressed a button. A song began to play.

_"Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime. Say the word, and I will follow you. Say you want me with you here, beside you. Anywhere you go let me go too. Love me, that's all I ask of you…"_

"Why that's beautiful," Picard said. "Where did you get that?"

"Before I came here I went to Data's quarters. I heard music playing, and I asked the computer to record whatever music was being played in there."

"And what is it?"

"It's unknown," Guinan said. "Even the computer didn't know. But it did know that the music wasn't being played. It was being sung."

Picard looked surprised. "Data and…?"

"Deanna Troi." Picard's eyes widened.

"What?"

"When I recorded this, Deanna and Data were in the room singing together."

Picard sat back in his chair. "I knew Data to sing but…Deanna? She has never mentioned anything about singing of any sort. And she sounds quite good, as if she's taken lessons."

"I looked in her Star Fleet records. She hasn't," Guinan said matter-of-factly. "Yet she already knew how."

Picard thought for a moment. The whole room was quiet, and confused. None of them knew how these pieces of information fit together.

"Captain Picard?" Commander Shelby said.

"Go ahead Commander," Picard said.

"Sir there's a private transmission coming from the _Titan_." Picard looked at all his officers seated at the table.

"Dismissed," he said. They all got up and left the room. When they all had gone, he played the transmission in the Observation Lounge.

"Captain Picard," Will Troi said.

"Hello Will."

Will sighed. "I wanted to talk to you privately about my wife. I know she is over there, counseling Data, but-"

"I wouldn't call it 'counseling,' Will," Picard replied. "They've been singing together in Data's quarters."

"Singing?" Jean-Luc nodded. "Deanna has never sung one song in her life. At least none that I've heard." He shook his head. "This doesn't make any sense. This morning I found a note in our quarters, a love note, signed 'Erik.'"

Picard looked confused. "Hmm. I'm sure with the number of people we have onboard between our ships there's an Erik somewhere. How do you propose to find him, and then talk to Deanna about it?"

"I don't have the slightest clue, but it'll have to wait. We're preparing to change our course and Deanna still hasn't transported back. She isn't responding to my transmissions, and I was wondering if you could kindly tell her that we are leaving now."

"Of course," Picard said, willing to do anything for his former first officer. "I'll let you know when we are transporting her." He ended the transmission and made his way to Data's quarters.

He could still hear singing, though barely. The walls and doors of the_Enterprise_ were designed to let very little sound in and out, but he could tell when the singing did stop as he pressed the door bell.

The door opened, and Data peered out. "Yes Captain?"

"Data, Deanna's ship is leaving now. It's time for you two to say goodbye."

Data glared at him. "She's not leaving."

Picard was surprised. He had not seen Data act like this before. He had heard from many people, such as Geordi and Tasha, but had never observed it for himself. "Data, her ship is _leaving_. She needs to go with it."

Data stepped out into the hallway, his fists clenched at his sides. "She's not leaving," he growled. "She wants to stay with me."

Picard casually put a hand on his phaser. He didn't want to use it, but Data looked like he was ready to punch him. He saw Deanna come up behind Data. "Please…stop," she said to Data. "Don't hurt him."

Picard looked from one to the other, but his gaze settled on the Counselor. "Deanna, your husband is waiting for you."

"I don't want to go with him," Deanna said defiantly, putting her hand on Data's arm. "I'm staying with Erik."

Picard stared at her. "Erik?"

The distraction gave Data what he needed. He struck Picard so hard that it knocked the captain down. Data stared down at the motionless man, fists clenched, breathing hard. He picked up Picard's weapon, then turned to Deanna. "Now is the time, my love. We must leave. Now." He took her hand and they hurried down the hallway.

Picard groaned and sat up with the help of two officers that rushed over. "Security!" one shouted. "We need security on Deck 2!"

Data and Deanna ran down the hallways, towards the nearest shuttle bay. They were stopped by a team of security officers, who formed a tight line in the corridor. They were led by Will Troi.

The tall man stepped forward. "Data?" He saw Data clutch Deanna's hand tighter, and stepped forward. "Come on Deanna, it's time to go." He reached for her hand, but Data jerked her behind him.

"No," he snarled. "You will not take her away from me. She is mine." Will stared at Data.

"What?" What had gotten into him? She was _his_? Hardly! She was _his_ wife.

Data let go of Deanna's hand and came to meet Will. "You…will _not_ take her from me," he whispered savagely. "Not this time."

His hands shot forward and grabbed Will by the throat, choking him. The security officers jumped into action, grabbing Data's arms and pulling him back.

"Run Christine _run_!" he shouted, and Deanna bolted down the hallway in the commotion. Data fought off his captors, vaulting back and forth and throwing them off of him. He reached for the phaser he had grabbed from Picard and began firing. Will had gotten up and come at Data again, but Data was too quick. He tackled Will, knocked him against the wall, seizing his throat once more, slamming him against the wall.


	10. Chapter 10

Will dug his fingers into Data's wrists, trying desperately to get him off. Data was so engrossed in his attempt to kill Captain Troi that he did not notice Beverly come up behind him. The doctor put a hypospray up to his neck and before he could turn around she had injected the substance. Beverly and a security officer caught him as his legs buckled under him, and they pulled his limp body off of Will Troi. Beverly laid Data on the floor. She then looked up at Will. "Are you all right?"

"Yes," he said. "Where-" Picard came walking briskly down the corridor, rubbing the side of his head where Data had hit him. He looked at Will.

"Deanna has left with a shuttle to God knows where," Picard said crisply, irritated. "The shuttle is out of tractor beam range, so we will have to catch up with her and then use the tractor beam to pull her back into the ship. We'll get her back, Will," Picard told Will, who nodded in the way that inferred that he understood but didn't like what he was understanding. Quite frankly, Picard was fed up with the whole situation himself. Normally, he absolutely loved solving mysteries but this mystery had brought Will worry and emotional pain over his wife, Data's friends confusion and concern, and him a sore head. Picard frowned down at Data, lying unconscious on the floor. "What in heaven's name is going on with the two of them?"

Beverly was busily scanning Data again. "I have no idea."

"Doctor I want you to run those tests again and see if you still can't find anything. I'll be on the Bridge," he called over his shoulder as he walked away.

Beverly sighed. She too was frustrated; she knew nothing new would turn up. Still, she followed the captain's orders. They moved Data to Sick Bay and Beverly and her medical staff ran all the tests they knew how to run.

"Whatever it is, _I can't find it_." Beverly swore to herself quietly. She was the chief medical officer, and she couldn't do anything. Not one thing. She felt so helpless that it made her feel inferior to her title and her duty. "Can't you just _tell _me what's wrong with you?" she asked Data, not expecting a response.

"Doctor?" Beverly turned to see Tasha standing at the edge of the room, looking very uncertain whether she was allowed in or not. Beverly smiled. "Come on in, Tasha."

Tasha walked over to Data's side. Beverly watched her slide her hand underneath his and hold it, entwining her fingers around his. It made her feel even more guilty that she couldn't figure this puzzle out.

"You don't know what's wrong, do you?"

"Nope." The doctor walked back to the results displayed on the computer screen, determined to look it over just _one_ more time. Maybe she had missed something, though a little voice in the back of her head told her she hadn't. She angrily pushed it away and stared at the numbers and diagrams. "I wish I knew what it was though." She pursed her lips together. Had there been any other instance such as this? Change in personality? Unexpected behavior? Mutiny?

The word _mutiny_ rang through her head. There had only been a single case of mutiny among the _Enterprise_ crew. She didn't know how she could have forgotten it, but it had been so many years. But it could be the answer she was looking for.

"There is one possibility…" Beverly murmured to herself, walking slowly back over to Tasha, deep in thought.

"What?"

"It was a while ago…_years_ago. Will, Miles O'Brien, Deanna, and Data transported down to a planet; we though there might be people stranded there, but we found no one. When they returned, Deanna, Data, and Miles committed mutiny against the captain. We later found that they had been possessed by three spirits who wanted our ship to transport the rest of their companions off the planet, and to find their own bodies again."

"So…you think Data is possessed by a spirit?" Tasha asked. Beverly nodded. "How do we get rid of it?"

Beverly grimaced. "That's the hard part. There's an extremely strong particle beam that when exposed to a person causes the pain receptors' activity in the brain to increase dramatically, and for some reason the spirit cannot hold onto its host's body. That's why Will wasn't effected. At the time of the possession, his arm was broken, so the spirits couldn't enter him."

"In other words, the beam will cause him tremendous physical pain?"

Beverly nodded with an apologetic smile. "That's why it's the hard part."

Tasha sighed and nodded. "If that's the only way, then let's do it."

Beverly suddenly grew excited, despite the circumstances. They were finally getting to the bottom of this. "I'll notify the captain."

* * *

"There," Jean-Luc said. He and Will were looking at a primitive planet, its native people were few. The shuttle had gotten there first and had already landed on the planet, and though they were unhappy about having to go down and retrieve Deanna, at least they had found her.

"Commander Shelby, assemble and away team and-"

"Crusher to Picard."

He held up a finger to a waiting Commander Shelby. "Picard here. Have you found anything?"

"Yes. Can you come to Sick Bay?"

Picard turned. "Commander Shelby, you have the Bridge. Will, would you accompany me?" Will nodded and followed him onto the turbolift.

Beverly welcomed them with a smile as he stepped into Sick Bay.

"Do you remember when Data, Deanna, and Chief O'Brien committed mutiny?"

He nodded sarcastically. "Yes. Vividly."

"I think we may be dealing with the same situation here. I can't find anything else to explain their strange behavior," said with confidence.

"Then you want to try the particle beam?"

"Yes."

Picard nodded again, grimly. "Very well, Doctor. Proceed." Beverly turned and walked back to the place where she had already set up the device that would omit the beam. Data lay, still sedated, underneath it. Tasha stepped back as the doctor turned on the machine, and the beam shot downward, covering Data. He automatically sucked in a sharp breath and began to groan, his muscles "spastically" tensing and relaxing, tensing and relaxing. Tasha put one hand over her mouth, anxiously wondering when the spirit would leave his body. A minute went by.

"Increase the voltage," Picard said. Beverly, her brow creased with utter distress that she had to do this to a friend, increased the voltage. Data's entire body stiffened, his groans becoming sharper with each passing moment.

"Increase," Picard said again, wanting as much as everyone else in the room to stop the beam completely. But he could not. It was the only way.

Beverly's reluctant hand reached up and turned the beam up to the highest voltage. Data's eyes were squeezed tightly, tears beginning to come from the corners of his eyes. His eyes suddenly shot open, and darted to Tasha.

"T-Tasha…" he whispered brokenly. "Tasha…!" he cried.

"_Tasha…Tasha…" Data whispered. He lay on the floor, breathing hard. The pain was in his head too, as well as his body and soul._

_He realized that moment that he had been manipulated. All this time, he had been someone else. "I…am…Data…" he whispered. "I…am…Data…"_

_Erik screamed, his trembling hands gripping his hair. He screamed louder and louder. But he struggled to his feet, gathering his strength. He leapt on top of Data, choking him with his hands. _

"_You are Erik!" he screamed. "You are Erik! Do you hear me?! You are Erik!!" With strength Data hadn't even known the man had, Erik threw him backwards, making him crash against the chair. Before he could get up and fight back, Erik shoved him back into the chair. "If you are not…" He never finished his sentence, but with an evil, insane smile stumbled toward Data. The pain was physically ringing throughout the darkness, yet still the man stumbled and struggled towards him. Data felt too weak to stop him._

_The light above the chair revealed a noose in his hand. Data suddenly found himself bound hand and foot to the chair again. He struggled and tugged helplessly at the rope, but he could not move. _

_Erik wrapped the noose around Data's neck and tightened it steadily until the rough threads of the rope began rubbing the skin on his neck raw. Data's surroundings, the ringing that echoed through the place, the light above him, his pain, his grip on his consciousness, all seemed to slowly fade away from him, fleeing just out of his reach. _

_The ringing grew louder and more intense, making his enemy vault backwards in pain. The ropes fell from his hands and feet, and Data fell from the chair onto his knees, his hands flat on the floor. He coughed and sputtered in pain. Erik gathered his strength against the pain that was practically deafening them. He kicked Data in his ribs, knocking him to the floor. He then pushed him over onto his back with his foot, and placed his foot on his chest, and pushed on it. Data felt like he was suffocating. And when he looked into Erik's cold, heartless face, he felt like he was suffocating even more; with fear._

"_Who are you?!?" Erik growled._

"_It isn't real…it isn't _real_…" Data whispered._

_Erik reached down and grabbed the end of the noose that was still hanging from Data's neck, and pulled until Data's whole upper body was off the floor. Data gasped for air. After a few moments, the man released it and Data crashed to the floor again. _

"_WHO ARE YOU?!?" Erik screamed. _

"_I am Erik…" Data whimpered in fear. "Don't hurt me…don't hurt me _please_…"_

* * *

Picard watched Data's face grimly. It had been over a minute and a half now, and still nothing had happened. Nothing but Data screaming and groaning with pain, calling Tasha.

But suddenly the expression on his face changed. It went from pain and longing to pain and…revenge. Anger. Data's eyes opened again, but this time they were not filled with innocent fear. They were filled with hate. He glared at them all, then, to their surprise, shot upright.

Beverly grabbed a hypospray off the table next to her, but Data had leapt off the bed and out of the range of the particle beam. He shoved Picard aside and bolted out the door.

"Security alert on all decks!" Picard yelled. "_No one leaves this ship!_"


	11. Chapter 11

**_No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!! But how I love it so..._**

Data dashed out of Sick Bay and down the hallways, his legs moving as fast as he could possible make them. His need to get away filled his head, and for a brief moment, he forgot where he was going and why.

He had been thoroughly convinced that he _was_ Erik. Even now the majority of his mind told him it was true and refused to even acknowledge the name "Data," but the small part, the small voice that said things were not right here was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. He was Data…he should not run away…get _help_…

"Halt!" someone shouted. Data recognized Worf standing defiantly in his way, he and his security squad all pointing phasers at his chest. "Do not move," Worf told him strongly. Data heard more people behind him, and the almost silent _whirr_ of the weapon being activated.

Panic set in, accompanied by anger. He was angry with everyone, even himself for not knowing who he was anymore. Was he even in this mess? Where? He didn't even know if his judgment was his own, but all he wanted was to get away. Both parts of whoever he was wanted to. This Data person wanted to get away from the Erik person, and the Erik person wanted to get off the ship. They wanted to get away from everything. He touched his head with one hand.

"_If you do it again…"_ a voice echoed in his head. "_I will-"_

"NO!" Data screamed. He would do _anything_ to not be hurt again. As much as he wanted, desired, _craved_ his freedom and the truth to all this, he forced the feeling back. It would not make Erik happy. And if Erik was not happy, he would hurt him again. "Please no please no please no…"

Worf watched as his friend crumbled in the hallway, whimpering in fear. But it was not of him. It was of something else. He tentatively walked forward, watching carefully for any sudden movements that could be considered aggressive. If he did, he would have to shoot Data.

Data looked up at him from the floor. He was incredibly afraid. Worf wanted desperately to help him, but he knew there was something very wrong here. He didn't know if it was safe to get close to him.

"Help me…" Data whispered. His face kept changing from being angry to being fearful, from being angry to being fearful. "Help me!" He yelped again, then gasped.

"Data?" Worf asked. He still kept his phaser ready.

Data hand shakily reached up to his throat, clawing at it as if something were there, choking him. He struggled for breath, gasping and coughing. He fell backwards onto the floor, taking in great gasps of air. Whatever it was had let go of him, but from what Worf saw Data was aware that it might come back.

"Make it go away…" he whimpered like a small child. "Make it _stop…_"

"Stop what?" Worf asked.

"He's _hurting _me…please don't let him hurt me…" Data's face became white. "He's coming…"

"Who?"

"_HIM!_" he yelled. He leapt forward, honestly not caring if Worf shot him or not. And indeed they shot at him, firing lightening fast streaks of orange across the space between him and them. He somehow avoided them, dodging and jumping out of the way and towards the Transporter Room.

Once inside Data flipped around and jammed the door, knowing it would take his pursuers a moment or two to override it. He knocked the man at the console down and quickly and expertly pressed several buttons. He then ran up to the platform as the team burst through the door…but he was gone. The last of his particles were fading away. Worf slammed his fists against the wall and cursed loudly in Klingon. He was not looking forward to explaining this to Picard.

Worf wasn't the only one who had some explaining to do. Beverly stood in her office, her hands hanging helplessly by her sides. Picard stood with his arms folded in the doorway, and Tasha leaned against the wall. Will had returned to his own to coordinate a search to locate Deanna and Data.

"I want an explanation and I want it now," Picard said, irritated. Beverly knew the irritation was not in any way, shape, or form directed at her; still it was affecting her. She felt it was her fault.

She held open her empty hands, as if to show her captain that she had nothing to offer him. "I'm afraid I don't have one."

"I can't accept that. There has to be something."

Worf trudged into the room. "Sir. He…got away. He used the transporter room to beam down to the planet's surface."

Picard stood for a moment, considering the situation. Nothing was going as planned. Nothing was working. Nothing was going right.

"Thank you Lieutenant." Worf nodded and left in the same defeated manner in which he had entered.

Beverly said, "It seemed that for a moment, he _did_ come back, Captain. He _was Data_. But…something took over. It could be that after a certain amount of time together, the host's body and the alien spirit become part of each other; fused." Picard looked very intrigued by this. He had never heard of it. "If that is the case, Captain, we may be too late."

Picard peered at her. "What do you mean? Are you saying that it is impossible to part the two once they are fused?"

"I'm not saying that it's set in stone, but that is my guess, yes."

"Can't you modify the particle beam to a more intense setting?"

"Captain!" Beverly exclaimed. "That much pain receptor activity in their brains could overload their normal brain patterns. You could _kill_ them!"

"Would you rather me leave them alone and be done with it? Would you rather me give up, sit back, and not try at all?!" Picard asked her. "Is that would you have me do? I'm sorry Beverly but this is a necessary risk. We have to get them back."

At that precise moment, Q spontaneously popped into the room. He looked at Beverly and Picard glaring at him. "What? Am I late?" He bowed to Tasha and offered her a flower that seemed to appear in his hand. "And how are you my dear?"

"Quite well thank you," Tasha said, throwing the flower on the floor. "What have you done to him?"

Q shook his head in disappointment. "What is it with you people and not being thankful for all the wonderful things I do for you?"

Tasha marched forward and grabbed Q's shirt before Picard could tell her off. "What have you done to him?!" she yelled. "You brought me back only to bring me misery? To bring him pain? And you claim that we should be thankful to you?!"

"Lieutenant Yar!" Picard barked.

Tasha turned to glare at him. "Sorry Captain, but I'm not under your command anymore."

"It's quite all right, Captain," Q assured him. He looked at Tasha with a smile. "But I'm afraid that I have no idea what you're talking about."

Tasha gritted her teeth and pushed Q back. "You will _tell us now_!!"

"Lieutenant Yar that is _enough_!" Picard shouted. "You may not be part of my crew anymore but you are still on my ship and will follow and abide by my rules!" Tasha glared at him, but backed off. Picard then walked forward to Q, looked at him, then aggressively grabbed him and slammed him against the wall.

"You will answer to _me_, Q," Picard growled. "_What have you done?!"_

Q smiled shrewdly. "Temper temper Capitán," Q said slyly. "Are you going to strike me?"

"Jean-Luc," Beverly said softly, gently placing her hand on his shoulder. Q continued his sarcastic smiling as Picard stepped back. Picard still felt capable of beating all the anger he had within him into Q, but as the captain, the leader and example to the people aboard this vessel, he had to remain calm. Beverly had reminded him of that. Still, he could not speak. He knew that if he did, the only thing that would come forth would be more yelling and shouting.

Beverly kept her hand on the captain's shoulder, waiting a few moments for him to calm down. "Q," she said quite coolly, "we need to know what's going on. Please."

Q's smile turned sincere, and he nodded appreciatively at her. "Finally, someone asks me something politely." He walked around behind them, looking as though he were sizing Beverly up. He obviously approved. "I will honor politeness. Patience. Endurance. They are indeed more of the fascinating qualities of humanity. But there is one quality, so intriguing, so _mysterious_ among humans…we simply _had_ to investigate. To experiment, to learn about…love."

Picard was greatly surprised. "Love?"

Q nodded in excitement, though he realized no one else shared it. "Yes! Human love is a thing of great interest to us. More ravenous than the wildfires of your earth, yet it can be as quiet, tranquil, and gentle as a sunset on Betazed. The fact that a husband or wife would give up their very existence for their spouse is…astounding. They would do anything to be together. _Anything. _We wanted to know, if it went _beyond _the body. Beyond death itself? Exactly how far does true love go?" He shrugged.

Beverly and Picard stared at Q, and he basked in their confusion. He absolutely _loved_ that he had to explain _everything_ to them so that their puny minds could comprehend the concept. "Here is a name for your lovely little computer to look up for you; Christine Daaé. Oh! And…the Phantom of the Opera." He smirked. "More of a title than a name. The two were…soul mates, in a manner of speaking, wandering in order to find each other after death for over a thousand of your human years." He grinned. "Determined, wouldn't you say?" Then he was gone.

Picard said nothing, but stood clenching his teeth and staring at the place Q had been. "So. This is a product of Q's latest interest in humanity."

Beverly stood beside him, contemplating Q's words. "Those spirits were _supposed_ to inhabit two people on the _Enterprise, _according to Q. Do you think that's why Q brought Data and Tasha back?"

"Perhaps." Picard turned. "Tasha I-" Picard's gaze drifted to the doorway where Tasha had been. She was gone. "Tasha?"

"Computer locate Natasha Yar," Beverly told the computer quickly.

"Natasha Yar is not onboard the _Enterprise_," the computer said.

"_Remember, lovers will do anything to be together,_" Q's voice said, echoing through the room from no place in particular. It was as if he were dropping hints for them to follow. It annoyed Picard almost to his limit, but he didn't say anything. Anything that concerned Q anyway.

"Picard to Shuttle Bay One and Three. Have any shuttles departed to the planet surface within the last hour?"

"One, sir," an officer replied. "Former Lieutenant Natasha Yar and Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge. They left less than two minutes ago."

"Get them back," Picard snapped, not bothering with pleasantries. He knew what he wanted, and he wanted it now. And frankly, he didn't care what Q thought of him at the present moment for his rudeness.

"I'm sorry sir, but we can't. They are out of tractor beam range and the transporter rooms can't lock onto their signals."

Picard swore to himself. "Will is down there right now. They're going to try to get to Data and Deanna before they do." He looked over at Beverly, who looked like she was hard at work on the computer. For once, he began to get irritated with her.

"Beverly are you even _listening_?"

"I heard you," she said calmly. She pressed several keys, her eyes still glued to the screen. "I was just looking up the names Q gave us."

At once, Picard was interested, and forgot his irritation. "And?"

"Christine Daaé. Nineteen-year-old soprano at the Paris Opera house. She began living there as a young child after her father died. She was very successful and famous for her voice. It says she married the theater's patron, a man called…Raul, the the Vicomte de Chagny. She was married to him for five years, until he became abusive and violent. She left to find another man she knew at the opera house."

"Does it say who?"

"No."

Now Picard was even more interested. The Paris Opera house had been his mother's favorite place to go as a girl. She had always told her children about it. "The Paris Opera house…I had been there many times. There was a rumor of a ghost that used to live there centuries ago."

Beverly sighed and shook her head. "Well there's not much about him, whoever he is. But there are plenty of reports of the things he did." The doctor laughed as she read. "No one even _knew_ about him until he started kidnapping Christine on a regular basis in an attempt to convince her to marry him." She smirked. "Not the romantic type…but he was obsessed with her."

"No name?"

"None. He was simply known as the Opera Ghost, or the Phantom of the Opera, since he was believed to be a ghost at first. There is a mention of one older woman who knew him but…none of her files come up either." Beverly tapped her finger against the desk. "Obviously they are the two lovers we're dealing with. Miss Daaé tried to find this man, but…she never found him. She died at the age of 67, still looking for him."

* * *

Geordi sat in the pilot's seat, and Tasha sat beside him in the copilot's seat. Both were silent. They both knew why they were here.

Geordi had been on his way to Sick Bay, to check up and see what the current situation was with Data. Had they caught him? Had he gotten away? Was he all right? He had been in the doorway when he had heard Beverly talking to the Captain.

"_That much pain receptor activity in their brains could overload their normal brain patterns. You could kill them Captain!"_ the haunting words echoed through his head. But what had stung him most was his captain's response.

"_I'm sorry Beverly but this is a necessary risk." _Of course, to Geordi, he had sounded less than sorry. He sounded like he didn't care, like if he thought that there was no other way. There _had _to be another way…there just _had_ to be…

But what bothered him was the logical side of his mind, telling him in a quiet, calm voice that the captain was right. There was no other way. And if they wanted to get Deanna and Data back, they had to try it. He honestly doubted that they could simply talk the spirits into leaving.

"I don't know what we'll do," Tasha said quietly.

"Neither do I," Geordi told her. "But we have to try. We have to try before the captain gets there, before Captain Troi gets there. And we will," he told her reassuringly. "We will."

They flew the shuttle over the ground, over and through the jagged mountains that made up much of the planet's surface, letting the shuttle's sensors scan for human life signs while they visually searched the surrounding terrain.

"There!" Tasha said suddenly. The sensors began beeping steadily, notifying the pilots that two human life forms were nearby. Geordi looked to where Tasha was pointing, to the top of a near peak. There, two figures, barely visible to the human eye, stood atop the crest. Geordi turned the shuttle away from the peak, careful not to let themselves be seen. He subtly landed the craft a ways away from the two.

Geordi powered their shuttle down and sat for a moment in his seat. Tasha gave him a questioning look. He sighed, saying, "Tasha. If we don't succeed…"

"I know we will, Geordi. We have to." She stood abruptly and stared down at him. "No more doubting. Let's go."

Geordi nodded and joined her, and together, they climbed out of the shuttle, and cautiously made their way towards the top of the peak, careful not to disturb a single twig or rock that might make a sound and give them away. They hid behind the ridge that came right before the flat top of the summit, peeking over it to watch their friends.

"Are you ready, my angel of music?" Data was asking quietly.

"I am, my mysterious phantom." Deanna smiled softly and grasped his hands in hers as she looked up into his face. Her anticipation and excitement were almost unbearable. She was both afraid and joyful, for after so many long and lonely decades apart, they would be together in life, and in death. They were no longer lost.

Data lifted her hands to his face and kissed them. "Then let us seal this. Forever." His eyes suddenly shut and he clenched her hands tightly.

"Erik? Erik what's wrong?" Deanna asked fearfully.

After a moment, he opened his eyes again and answered. "We must hurry," he whispered. "I'm losing my grip on him. He broke away once…now he is unsure and doubtful. Unless we perform the ceremony soon, he will break away again." He shook his head. "I have to fight for my control now."

"She too has broken away. More than once," Deanna said, shaking her head sadly. "She was never truly convinced. Not fully."

"Then the situation is even more urgent. Come. Let us proceed, my love."

They walked together towards the end of the mountain that dropped what seemed thousands of feet below. They gripped each other's hands tightly, reciting something in unison. As they did, the wind suddenly picked up, swirling intensely around them in a small cyclone.

"Together forever in life, in death;

Sworn to the other with every breath.

Be joined one together within the mortal,

And be joined forever within the immortal."

Tasha and Geordi watched with both utter curiosity and horror as the wind grew more and more intense. The pair, still joining hands, began to lift slightly off the ground. The ceremony of which they had spoke was beginning, and Tasha couldn't stand it any longer.

She broke away from their hiding place and rushed out into the open, breathless, and not knowing what to do. Her Star Fleet training and experience seemed to vanish, and she suddenly panicked. She realized now how stupid she had been, how utterly foolish she had been thinking that everything would be okay, that everything would work out the way she wanted it too. She didn't have a plan at all.

In her panic and utter despair that she might today lose Data and Deanna both forever, she ran towards them. "Data!" she cried.

The wind's force was much stronger than she had anticipated. As soon as she was within ten feet of them, the whirlwind threw her precariously close to the ledge.

"Tasha!" Geordi shouted over the dimming roar of the wind. He jumped out and dashed towards the ledge. She was nearly about to topple over. Time seemed to slow. He thought he had all the time in the world. It was only a few meters away; surely he could get there in time. Yet her arms flew in all directions as she desperately tried to keep her balance, and it was no good. She fell over the edge with a scream.


	12. Chapter 12

_**No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!! But how I love it so...**_

* * *

_Thank you for the awesome reviews and comments! I really appreciate every single one of them. I actually wrote this story about…say three or four years ago, and it's been sitting on my Microsoft Word files since then. So I decided to post it, not knowing what I'd get out of it – but I guess it was worth putting up!_

_And I'm sorry to those who wanted me to perhaps makes some changes – I don't plan on changing it. It's not a present project, but a past one. I hope you may still enjoy it! XD_

* * *

Tasha fell towards the deep, treacherous gorge below. She pictured the end in her mind, knowing it would come all too soon. But what bothered her most wasn't her own death. It was that she had died trying. Died trying, and failed. Now Data would never know how very much she had loved him, and how much despair it had caused her as she looked up one last time towards the peak from which she had fallen, where he still was, and think that he was lost forever to her, and to himself.

But she didn't fall far. A hand caught her wrist, but it wasn't Geordi's.

Tasha stared up into Data's face. For a few seconds, her terror subsided. She felt pity instead, for she could tell that he was struggling to maintain control of himself and his grip on her. For a moment, his hold loosened and she gasped as she inched closer to her death, but a moment later it tightened again. He held her so tightly that her hand turned white, but she hardly noticed.

"Data?" she heard Geordi call.

"I won't let her go," he called loud enough that Geordi could hear. "I won't let you go," he told her. He gazed down at her terrified face with sadness and complete love and admiration. "I promise."

_"Let her go!" Erik roared. "She is not worth anything to us! She is not the one we want! LET HER GO!"_

_"I won't! Not ever!" Data yelled back. He marched up to Erik, looking into his cold eyes with rage. "You have manipulated me, controlled me…dictated me to the point where I don't even know who I AM anymore!" He gritted his teeth. "But not her. There is one thing you cannot dictate, and that is my love for HER!" _

_Erik snarled. He roared like an angry caged animal. He leapt at Data and knocked him backwards, pushing him into the dark._

Data gasped. He struggled with his grip on Tasha's hand, but felt it slipping. "Data…?" he heard her fearful voice call through the darkness. He knew he could not hold onto himself and his consciousness much longer, but he had to save her. With all his strength, he heaved her back up and out of the void above the deadly gorge. As soon as she was out of danger, he weakly fell back onto the rocky ground.

Geordi tried to help Tasha to her feet, but she waved him off and leaned over Data. For a moment, he was himself again, and let his fingers brush against her cheek. But the next moment, his hands shook, and his eyes closed as the internal battle once again raged inside his head.

"You can do it, Data," Tasha whispered to him. "Fight him."

Geordi glanced up at Deanna, who had come quietly to sit beside them. She stared at Geordi and Tasha curiously. Geordi turned to her. "What about you, Deanna? Are you still in there somewhere?"

_Deanna looked up pleadingly to Christine. The young girl looked torn. She was a good-hearted person, Deanna knew, and only wanted to be happy. But she didn't want to hurt anyone. She never had. Deanna knew that was why she had never been truly convinced that they were one person. Christine had not used any violence whatsoever. And now…she looked almost guilty for not letting Deanna out._

"_Christine…please. This isn't right, and you know it."_

"_But I…I love him," Christine whispered, breaking into tears. "We have spent thousands of years endlessly searching for one another. You don't understand how much we have wanted this…"_

"_I think I can. But you have each other. Why do you need us?"_

_She looked up into Deanna's sympathetic ebony eyes. "We wanted human life together. The one we left behind in Paris. Without it…we can never experience what we always wanted to have between us. Unity between two people." She sobbed, her voice breaking. "You don't know how lucky you are…both of you. Both of you have people that love you so much…people that you can always turn to and know that they will always love you. Always be there. Always feel their touch and know that it is gentle and kind…"_

_Deanna stared at her in horror. "Christine…didn't you have that?"_

_Christine suddenly looked afraid as her memories overtook her. "I…I did. Once. He was such a kind man, such a noble and gentle man, but he…he…" She sobbed again. "He hurt me…he hurt me all the time. I tried to find Erik, but…but…"_

_Deanna pulled the young girl close to her and let her cry. "I never got to say goodbye. And I never found him. He just disappeared. I died in my old dressing room at the opera house, hoping he would hear me like he always did…and come for me. To sing to me. To love me. All I want is for him to love me..."_

"_You can have that still," Deanna told her gently. "You can always have that. If you love each other so much, you don't need us. You don't need anything but yourselves."_

"Deanna…?" _a voice echoed. Deanna looked up, as did Christine._

_Christine wiped her eyes. "All right. You may go. I will leave." She smiled. "Thank you, Deanna. And I'm sorry."_

_Deanna smiled. "It's all right…and you're welcome. And Christine…" Christine turned to look at her one last time. Deanna smiled at the ghost of the young, fair girl. "Good luck. I wish you well."_

_Christine smiled. She stood there for a few moments, then vanished._

Deanna fell forward. It almost seemed that she fell out of someone, for another figure was left standing. Geordi caught her, and when she opened her eyes, and knew they were hers. The joy of her certainty was indescribable. She looked at Geordi happily and threw her arms around him. "I'll take that as a yes," Geordi said, smiling. Deanna turned to look at the figure.

Data's eyes opened and immediately settled on the shimmering girl. He struggled to his feet and walked slowly towards her, a look of total astonishment on his face. "Christine?" Data whispered. "What are you _doing_?"

"This is wrong, Erik," the girl's soft voice said. "Come with me…we don't need this. Let him _go_ and _come_ with me!"

"No," Data said sternly. His fists clenched at his sides. "I will not give in! I will not leave!"

"We can't do this anymore! They are people too. They have their own lives. Their own loves," Christine said, glancing at Tasha. "I can't…I _won't_ take that away from them." She gazed at Data, waiting. "Let him go, Erik, and come. I love you, but this is the one thing I won't do for you, and you know it. You _know_ I won't _hurt_ anyone!"

"A weakness," Data replied in a voice that sounded more like a growl. He glared at Christine's shimmering form for a moment, seeming to be thoroughly disgusted by her decision. "A weakness I do not possess."

"Oh…no," Tasha murmured. She stared over the hill from which she and Geordi had come. He followed her gaze and began to hear the almost-silent scrapes of shoes against the rocky side of the mountain. The away team from the _Titan_ had arrived.

* * *

"I detect…four life forms up there," a lieutenant told Captain Troi uncertainly. "Shouldn't there only be two?"

Will peeked over the top of the ridge. He scanned the top through the blazing sun that blinded him and discovered that his lieutenant was wrong. His eyes even widened for a moment despite the brightness of the day. There were in fact _five_ visible people standing there, and among them were Geordi and Tasha. He could not figure out who, or rather what, the fifth person was. She was a young, fair girl, with long wavy brown hair that hung past her shoulders. She almost didn't seem real, for she was slightly transparent and seemed to glimmer and shimmer under the sun's rays.

Deanna suddenly spotted her husband's dark brown head poking over the ridge. "Will?" she called uncertainly, but he could tell she was overjoyed to see him.

"Deanna?" he called back. She was alright? Was she…her? His wife? His Deanna? Or someone else?

"They're here!" Data said urgently, almost in a panic now, to the young girl. "Come Christine!" She merely stood where she was defiantly, glaring at him.

Everything clicked in Will's head. He had been so overwhelmed with worry for his wife and for the situation that he had not had time in the past few moments to put things together. The girl…she was the spirit who had been inhabiting Deanna. She was the "Christine" that Data, or rather the man who was possessing Data, had been referring to. Christine had left on her own, and this man was now trying to convince her to come back.

Will's mouth set in a grim line. He knew what he had to do.

Suddenly, Tasha, Geordi, and Deanna were beside him. Deanna went straight into his arms where he simply held her there for a moment, reassuring himself that she was there, with him.

"Sir," Tasha pleaded. "Please…" Her eyes were desperate, filled with distress. He looked away.

"Tasha, you _know_ that there's no other way. I'm sorry." Tasha gaped at him, and his decision, though she knew that he was right. She just couldn't accept it. Geordi bowed his head submissively as Will turned away. "Lieutenant, lock onto Lt. Commander Data's coordinates."

"Locked, sir."

Will hesitated for a moment. He looked at Tasha's horrified face, and Deanna and Geordi's sad expressions. He gazed at Data on the summit. For a moment, his old friend turned. He looked at Will, and he recognized him. He even smiled a little. Then he slowly nodded. They understood each other.

"Fire."

Their orbiting ship's modified phasers shot the particle beam straight to the specified coordinates. As soon as the glowing blue beam hit, Data collapsed to the ground. He screamed in pain and writhed on the ground. Tasha sprang forward towards him, but Geordi grasped her arms and helps her back. She gritted her teeth against the tears as she listened to her love's unbearable cries.

_Erik screeched louder as the piercing ringing ricocheted throughout the darkness. It was everywhere, in everything. It was excruciatingly painful…it was becoming impossible to hang on. Across the room Data lay curled up in a fetal position against the chair, whimpering and groaning._

_Erik's fingernails dug into his scalp, trying desperately to not let the pain get any father into his head. He held on as best he could with all the strength he had left, but it wasn't enough. "I CAN'T LET GO!!" he screamed. But the ringing got louder, so loud that it pounded through his brain like a knife piercing his consciousness, stabbing it with horrendous ferocity. _

_With a final shriek, he vanished. There was no shout of victory, however, no jump for joy, not even a small thought of happiness or freedom. Simply silence, and stillness._

Will was clenching his fists so tightly that his knuckles were turning white. Data's moans were becoming fainter and fainter, but finally, something happened. Something erupted from his body. It almost looked like his was literally being torn in two. The spirit was ripped from his body and was catapulted nearly fifteen feet away.

"Cease fire!" Will yelled. The beam faded, and the man rose. He stood between them and Data, glaring and breathing hard. He was dressed from head to toe in black, a cape draped around his shoulders. His dark hair fell slightly over his face, which was half covered by a bone-white mask. There was murder in his dark eyes.

The young girl ran up to his, taking his hand and lifting it to her face. As if by magic, the wickedness of his gaze seemed to disappear. His glare was replaced by a soft smile as he gazed fondly down at her lovely fair face, and they faded slowly together into nothingness.

There was nothing but ear-piercing silence. Data's limp body lay sprawled across the rocky ground, the wind ruffling his dark brown hair across his face. His head lay to one side, resting in the dust, his cheek slightly scraped from when he had fallen.

Geordi finally released Tasha, and she dashed forward with all her built up energy in her steps. She skidded to a stop and sank to her knees beside Data, her hands shaking. His passive face frightened her slightly, but she pushed it away.

Beverly was there beside her; Picard was beside the doctor. She continually scanned Data's still form, and with each moment, Tasha's own heartbeat deafened her. It filled her head so that all other words spoken around her mixed together into nothing more than jumbled humming.

"Cortical stimulators," Beverly said urgently. She placed the small devices on either side of Data's head. "Start at seventy percent." She rattled off the complex names of medical supplies she needed to her medical team. "Come on…" she whispered to Data.

She had been right about the particle beam and its effects on Data's brain. The irregular waves had overloaded his regular brain wave patterns. It had worked in getting the spirit out, but it had been too much for him.

"Come _on_…" she said again. She worked faster, trying desperately to stay ahead and stimulate all the functions that were failing. But it wasn't working. It wasn't enough. The doctor's scanner began beeping faster and faster, the signals becoming closer and closer together as his life faded. "I'm going to lose him," Beverly said in a broken voice. The scanner finally leveled into a steady monotone drone.

When Beverly lifted her sorrowful face to look at Tasha…

Everything stopped. Tasha made it stop. She didn't want it to go on. She knew what Dr. Crusher was about to tell her.

"No," Tasha said, already denying it.

"I'm sorry," Beverly said, shaking her head. Tears were filling her own eyes. "There was nothing I could do."

"No…" Tasha refused to accept this. It was all a big misunderstanding. It couldn't be happening. It wasn't possible; it wasn't real. "No…"

But she knew it was true. She gazed tearfully down at his youthful human face and saw no life there. Not a trace. She unintentionally began remembering it differently. She remembered the past few days…it had only been a _few days_, when he had been laughing, smiling, so full of life and fun…

And now there was nothing. There was nothing on his face. Tasha had been holding back her tears so long that they now came without her meaning them to. They seemed to force themselves out without her approval.

Tasha gave in and let a single sob escape as she reached down and ran her hand over his dark brown hair. She wished she could see his beautiful blue eyes just _one more time…_

"You can't die…" Tasha sobbed. "I love you."

"He knew you loved him, Tasha," Geordi whispered to her. "He knew we all loved him." He paused, then added, "And he loved you. He always loved you, Tasha."

The words hit her and more tears spilled down her cheeks. The sobs came and came and came…she could not stop them. Never had she been so unable to control herself before. She felt like a fool, yet she could not stop dwelling at Data's innocent face. Words escaped her…all she could do was sob.

Geordi gathered her in his arms and she cried into his shoulder. He rocked her gently back and forth as she clung to him tightly. The rest watched sorrowfully, knowing there was nothing in their power they could do to help.


	13. Chapter 13

**_No...it does NOT belong to me. STAR TREK TNG DOES NOT BELONG TO ME!! But how I love it so..._**

FINALLY DONE!!

* * *

Christine turned back for a brief moment. She looked back at a crowd of people clustered tightly around the man lying on the ground. She saw the golden-haired woman, his lover, crying and stroking his dirty face, already beginning to grow cold under the touch of her fingers.

"Erik…" she whispered. "Oh Erik _look._"

He looked as well. She saw on his face the regret and guilt for all that had happened. He glanced at her and it expanded. "I must admit, my dear, that your presence…always seems to tame me." He sighed. "You wish to help. Then go."

She smiled and let go of his hand and returned a few meters away from the commotion, gazing sadly at the growing grief of the people around her. She walked past them all, and came to kneel beside the woman.

Christine's eyes met with hers. She saw the genuine love there, the genuine grief. She also saw the surprise as the woman looked back into Christine's eyes. The hope that she could help.

"I believe I can," Christine told her, answering the woman's unspoken question. Christine placed her fingertips against the man's pale forehead, and closed her eyes.

_There was silence. Utter silence. There was no movement, no life at all. Christine looked about the dark place. She did not say a word as she searched. She saw a dimming light in the distance and ran towards it._

_The man was stiffly curled up against the chair. She cautiously touched his shoulder, almost hoping that he would turn and greet her, or even jump at her touch. But nothing happened. His shoulder was cold and hard._

_She brought her arms around him and pulled him away from the chair so that he lay flat on the floor. His skin was deathly white, his eyes closed. Christine sucked in a breath at the sight._

_She thought of Tasha, waiting, hoping that she could do something. In reality, she did not know what she could do. The only words that came to her were the words of a song she had sang long ago, when her father had died, leaving her alone in the cold world. _

_"Wishing you were somehow here again…wishing you were somehow near. Sometimes it seemed if I just dreamed…somehow you would be here…" She kneeled behind his head and placed her hands on either side of his head, washing away the damage with her words and her music. "Wishing they could hear your voice again…knowing that they never would…"_

_She felt warmth underneath her fingertips, and heard a shallow breath of air being pulled back into his lungs. "No more memories, no more silent tears. No more gazing across the wasted years…"_

_The warmth spread. It spread from his head to his toes, all throughout his body. He took a few shuddering breaths and sat up, whirling around to see who it was that had been touching him. He expected to see Erik, but instead he saw a girl. A young girl with a shy, warm smile._

_"Hello," she timidly said. _

_"Hello," he replied unsteadily. "Who are you?"_

_"I am Christine," she told him._

* * *

Tasha waited impatiently. She gripped Data's limp hand tightly, subconsciously rubbing it with her thumbs. Christine had disappeared again, so they all waited, watching their friend for any sign of life.

Beverly clutched her medical tricorder, waiting. She felt like she was only procrastinating to fill out a death certificate; a second one. She didn't want to, but she felt that would be the outcome. Yet she watched and held still for every moment.

Tasha gasped and gave a little cry. They all turned to look at her, concerned. But she was smiling. She even laughed a little. "He…he squeezed my hand a little," she said excitedly.

At almost the same time, Beverly's medical tricorder began showing life signs again. The scanner put forth a slow, uneven pulse, but a pulse none the less. She smiled broadly, turning to the captain. "He's alive."

Data turned his head a little, swallowing and taking shallow breaths. "All brain functions are returning to normal…pulse is steadying out…" Beverly read off, staring at her tricorder with amazement. "It's a miracle!"

Picard returned from his amazed state and put on his business-like, casual smile. "Picard to _Enterprise_."

"_Enterprise _here."

Picard looked around. They had gathered quite a party. "Seven to beam up."

"Aye sir."

Christine watched from the sky, Erik by her side. "You see that?" she whispered to him. "We did a good thing."

He nodded, and smiled. "I am…sorry Christine. I didn't really…I just…I wanted-"

"I know." She kissed him softly. "I know what you wanted. But we have it. Forever."

Data opened his eyes and sat up. He was on the Transporter Pad from what he could tell, and was surrounded by his friends. The first face he saw was Tasha's.

"You," he said softly.

"Me," she replied. She wiped the tears off her cheeks, though more just streamed down and took their place. "Thank God…" Tasha whispered. She leaned down and hugged him tightly. Data wrapped his arms around her, closing his eyes and savoring the smell of her hair, the warmth of her touch, the comfort of her presence…all that he had been missing. She then pulled back and smiled, embarrassed. Data was just overall happy. His mind was clear, and he was among friends.

"It seems you have quite a record Mr. Data," Picard told him, reaching down a hand and pulling him up off the floor. Data smiled a little. It had been the second time he'd been "dead."

The transporter chief lifted his face to them as they stepped off the transporter. It was Q's.

Picard restrained himself from attempting to strangle the entity.

"Well, it looked as if my little experiment worked!" Q said happily. He smiled his cocky grin at them all. "I do hope I was not too much trouble." Picard's fists clenched at his sides.

"Your 'experiment' almost killed my first officer." Picard growled.

"Again," Q added. "But I wouldn't have let him die. Data is my friend!" He strode over to Data and swung his arm across his shoulders. "Isn't that right, pal?"

Data glared at him for a moment. Everyone expected him to walk away, reject Q and tell him never to come back, which is precisely what Picard was very much hoping he would do. But instead, he sighed heavily and took Q's wrist and removed his arm from his shoulder. "I don't see how we are friends, Q. But I am forced to forgive you."

"Forced?" Q said, acting hurt. He smiled though. "Very well. A token, for your true, overly compassionate human heart." He snapped his fingers and was gone. The room was silent.

"Well, I'm glad that's over with," Beverly said, trying to break the silence. She scanned Data over one last time. "You check out fine Mister."

"Thank you, Doctor," he said with a small smile. He looked around at his friends. "I thank you all, for all that you did." He turned to Will. "And…I am sorry, Captain Troi."

Will shook his head with a smile. "Will."

"Will," Data repeated. He smiled, feeling a little funny. He had never even thought of ever calling him that. "I am sorry, Will, for-"

"It's all right. I know that you didn't do it. It was him, not you." He smiled down at his wife, then at Captain Picard. "Captain. I believe that I should be returning to my ship now." Picard nodded. "Goodbye until next time, Captain," Will said. Picard took his outstretched hand and shook it.

"Safe travels, Will."

"Goodbye Data, Tasha," Will said, turning to the couple. "It was…wonderful, to see you both again." He shook hands with Worf and Geordi.

Deanna finished her goodbyes to Beverly and Tasha, then turned to Data. They both were silent. "Well, goodbye, Data."

"Goodbye, Deanna." He paused. "Thank you, for helping me."

She smiled, then reached up and kissed him on his cheek. Everyone else was too wrapped up in their pleasantries and farewells to notice. "Be safe," she added. She turned and walked with Will to the transporter again.

"Energize," Captain Picard told the returned transporter chief. The group watched Deanna and Will's images fade away, back to the _U.S.S. Titan_, and back to their lives away from the _Enterprise. _Another fond farewell, but they all knew it was not the last. It never was.

* * *

"Pancake pancake eat it with a fork. Pancake pancake don't be a dork!" the brown-haired girl giggled.

Her father chuckled as he set a plate of cookies on the glass table. "Where did you learn that?"

"My friend and I were singing it at school," the ten-year-old told her father, taking a cookie. She kicked her legs and hummed the silly little tune. She was always happy. She was always singing or humming or laughing, and she loved her father very much. She always told him she loved him, every time she could, and he always told her that he loved her too. His response never failed to delight her.

"Mother!" she said as the woman came into the room, carrying her two-year-old little brother, Jayden. Her other little brother, six-year-old David, ran out from behind his mother.

"Daddy!" he cried. He ran towards his father, who kneeled down, arms open wide, to embrace his son. His son, with the dark brown hair, just like his.

His wife smiled as she came to sit at the table with her family. "Everyone thank Daddy for making us cookies," she told them.

"Thank you, Daddy," they all said in a unified, sing-song voice.

"You're welcome," he said in the same sing-song voice. The orange striped cat jumped up on the table and they all laughed as their father said, "No Spot, you can't have any cookies."

"Kitty," Jayden sounded out.

"Yes, that's the kitty," his mother replied with a smile. The toddler reached out to touch the kitty's tail as he walked by. "Be nice to the kitty," his mother warned him.

"How was your day at work, Father?" his daughter asked. "Did you and Mr. La Forge get the warp drive fixed?"

"I think we did," he replied, breaking off a piece of his cookie.

"You still go down there?" his wife asked, handing a cookie to her youngest son.

"I like working in Engineering once in a while," he told her. He smiled. "All that math…I just can't keep away." She laughed.

"After this, we all need to go to bed," his wife yawned. "And you have an early day tomorrow, Dad."

"Yes yes I know…" he sighed. He hated early days…his daughter on the other hand didn't mind them at all. She finished her cookies and ran to her room.

"Come say goodnight Father!" she called.

He shoved the last cookie in his mouth whole. "Data!" his wife scolded.

"What?" he said, his mouth full.

His wife restrained herself from laughing. She had to keep a serious face. Daddy was in trouble. "Don't talk with your mouth full!"

"Sorry," he apologized, his mouth still full. She glared at him again, but ended up laughing.

"Go on…" she said, waving him off. "But don't let it happen again."

"Yes ma'am," he said obediently after he was done chewing. He walked to his daughter's room. Her lights were already out, and he saw her silhouetted form lying in her bed. He knelt beside it, and she sat up and smiled. He smiled back, stroking her silky brown hair. His daughter was the child he was closest to. He always had been close to her.

"Goodnight, Lal," he whispered in the dark.

"Goodnight," she whispered back, her white smile reflecting the light from the hallway outside her door. "I love you, Father."

He smiled. This little tradition of theirs never got old. A simple goodnight and an "I love you" between father and daughter, but it meant so much more for the two of them. "I love you too, Lal." She was always thrilled that he could safely say that he loved her too, just as she had always loved him. She reached over and threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.

Memories flashed back in an instant. He never forgot them. He would always remember.

They had been walking down the hallway, back from the transporter room all those years ago…he was still remembering all his troubles, all the nightmares he knew he would have from the evil shadow that was still inside his mind. His future wife had been by his side, silently walking with him back to his quarters.

There had been footsteps, running through the hallways. So small and light they almost went unheard. People had watched her run by, a small little girl with short brown hair bouncing as she ran, a large smile on her face. She was laughing, her little feet shooting her towards the man with his head hung farther down the corridor.

He had almost not heard her. "Father!" the small voice cried. "Father!" He had turned, more startled by the yelling than the name in itself that was being called. But everything had changed when his gaze met…

She had jumped into his arms, laughing and crying at the same time. He laughed and cried as well, swinging her around in a circle. When he had finally willed himself to stop swinging her, he had placed her gently on the floor and introduced her to her future mother, Natasha Yar. Q's last gift to him, the gift of his daughter. A daughter whose voice he had thought he would never hear again.

Still, whenever she hugged him, she threw her arms around his neck and he remembered.

He kissed David goodnight. His son was already asleep, as was his youngest son, Jayden. He smiled at the thought of his three wonderful children, and his wonderful wife. She came to him and took his face in her hands, looking into his bright blue eyes as he gazed into her warm brown eyes. They kissed each other.

"I love you, Data," she told him. She turned and lay down in their bed.

"And I love you," he whispered back. He crawled under the warm covers beside her. The lights dimmed, and he stared the ceiling. He thought of his faithful friends, and his loving family, and fell asleep with a smile on his face. His life. His wonderful life.

He would always remember.


	14. Bloopers

***Don't own Star Trek. Nope. If I did, I wouldn't be sitting here, but rather, I would be off in Switzerland in my amazing mansion....*cough* Anyhoo.

* * *

I know that the story is complete and all. Wow, I wrote that story a LONG TIME ago. Well, long in my opinion. Anways, I was digging around in My Documents folder and came across these, buried in the archives of my writing files! Wow! Yeah - so I thought they were funny, and decided to post them. If you don't like them you can yell at me or just not say anything at all... It's a shame, I can't write like this anymore. I've gotten too...pessimistic, I suppose would be the best word. XD

**BLOOPERS!!!**

Well, SOMETHING of that sort...

**TAKE ONE**

"Captain!" Beverly exclaims. "That much pain receptor activity in their brains could overload their normal brain patterns. You could _kill_ them Captain!"

Picard laughs maniacally… "Muhahaha!!!"

**TAKE ONE**

Q's usual sarcastic face displays a grin. "How are you, Data?"

"I _believe_ I am functioning within normal parameters," Data says slowly.

Q chuckles to himself. "I'm sure."

Data studies Q. "Although my…brain seems to be experiencing some technical difficulties."

"Does that mean you're an idiot now?"

"What? No!"

"Well why not, Brent?"

"Because…because that's not in the script, John!"

**TAKE TWO**

Q's usual sarcastic face displays a grin. "How are you, Data?"

"I _believe_ I am functioning within normal parameters," Data says slowly.

"Are you sure?"

"Uh…yes."

"How?"

"Because…" Data's looking a little unsure why Q is asking him these ridiculous questions.

"But is that a good reason?" Q is looking very happy with the situation.

Data peers at him with a smile. "Do you just feel like _bugging_ me today?"

"Maybe…"

**TAKE THREE**

Q chuckles to himself. "I'm sure."

Data studies Q. "Although my…brain seems to be experiencing some technical difficulties."

"And why do you say that?"

Data looks at him, tries in vain to remember what to say, then begins laughing. "Because they told me to."

**TAKE FOUR**

"What can I say?" Q says, shrugging. "My grip on cybernetics is a bit…lacking," he says with a sly smile. His face turns disgusted again. "Being human is such a cursed way to live…perhaps I can take it back-"

"No!" Data says sharply. His gaze is intently focused on his hand, as the smile grows on his face. "I am human."

Q leans forward. "No DER!"

Data starts uncontrollably laughing again. "Would you STOP it??"

**TAKE FIVE**

"What can I say?" Q says, shrugging. "Oh, I know!" Q clears his throat. "How much wood could a wood chuck chuck if a wood chuck could chuck wood?" Q looks at Data. "Can you say that?"

Data concentrates, then replies. "How much wood could a wood chuck chuck if a wood chuck could chuck wood?" He then adds, "A skunk sat on a stump and thunk the stump stunk, but the stump thunk the skunk stunk."

Q is very determined now. "A skunk sat on a stump and thunk the stump stunk, but the stump thunk the skunk stunk. She sells sea shells by the sea shore. The shells she sells are surely seashells. So if she sells shells on the seashore, I'm sure she sells seashore shells."

"She sells sea shells by the sea shore. The shells she sells are surely seashells. So if she sells shells on the seashore, I'm sure she sells seashore shells. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers? If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, where's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?" Data takes a moment to catch his breath, then states, "Betty Botter had some butter, 'But,' she said, 'this butter's bitter. If I bake this bitter butter, it would make my batter bitter. But a bit of better butter--  
_that_ would make my batter better.' So she bought a bit of butter,  
better than her bitter butter, and she baked it in her batter, and the batter was not bitter. So 'twas better Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter."

Q stares at Data. "That's not fair." He walks away from the set. Data is smiling proudly. "That's not fair!" he calls.

**TAKE ONE**

The hunted have two options when cornered: fight, or flight. And when fighting is impossible, there is really only one other choice.

Run. Run like the _wind._

And that is exactly what Data does. He glimpses the rocky, orange dusted hills ahead of him and runs like mad towards them.

Unfortunately, he trips over a stick in his path that the set designers forgot to move. He sails toward the big plastic rock that he is supposed to hide behind and crashes through it. A woman screams.

"Sorry!"

Everyone is laughing as Data briskly walks back out. "That wasn't funny!"

**TAKE ONE**

Picard hears a series of mechanical bleeps and automatically responds, "Come."

He looks up from his book to discover Beverly standing there. "What is it Beverly?"

"Whatcha doin'?" Beverly asks in a sing song voice.

Catching on, Picard replies in the same sing song manner, "Readin' a book."

"Is it good?"

"Yep."

"What's it about?"

"I don't know. It has blank pages. I think I'm supposed to be pretending to read it."

Beverly laughs and walks off set.

**TAKE ONE**

Deanna runs faster, and the Commander falls behind with the others. Deanna keeps going. She half runs, half slides halfway down a hill and comes to a large rock…and past it. Data gets up from his lying position on the rock to see her go sliding past him.

She comes marching back up, acting as if nothing happened. Continuing with his lines, Data says, "Counselor, why are you crying?"

Deanna is in fact laughing to the point of tears. She waves him off and walks past him and back up the hill, still laughing. Data looks confused and lies back down on his rock.

* * *

Yup. Well, there they are. Comment if you'd like.


End file.
